Legislators call for education reform panel
Two state legislators with a background in public education have teamed up to call for the creation of a commission to look at reforming Pennsylvania’s education system with an eye toward equity.
State Reps. Joe Ciresi, D-146th Dist., and Regina Young, D-185th Dist., have introduced legislation to create an Education Reform Commission.
The commission would be tasked with performing an indepth study of the current educational needs in Pennsylvania, projecting out those needs over the next 25 years, and determining what can and should be done to help reform the current education system and prepare Pennsyl
vania for the future.
“We must work together — legislators, experts and the community — to assess the state’s educational needs so that we can better support our next generation of Pennsylvanians,” said Ciresi, a former Spring-Ford School Board member who serves on the House Education Committee and the Special Education Funding Commission.
“Instead of continuing piecemeal fixes and improvements, we need to take a comprehensive look at how we move our entire education system forward,” Ciresi said. “This commission would help develop a roadmap for doing just that, helping move Pennsylvania’s education system into the future.”
Young, who was previously an educator before she was elected last fall, also served as a community schools coordinator in the Philadelphia mayor’s office of education, said “this is an opportunity to bring everyone together and think about what we need our education system to look like.”
“The commission will engage with a variety of stakeholders across the state, including school board members, teachers, school administrators, businesses and chambers of commerce, students, and the general community, all in order to get a broader sense of issues in our education policies,” she said.
The commission will conduct a comprehensive study and make concrete recommendations on various education topics, including:
• Construction and renovation needs;
• Educational offerings and curriculum;
• Equipment and staffing needs;
• Extracurricular options;
• Career and technical education;
• Cost-savings opportunities;
• Fair school board elections;
• Adequate and equitable school funding;
• Equal access to education for all students.
Ciresi and Young officially introduced the legislation as H.B. 806, and it was referred to the House Education Committee for further review.