Testimony to the School Board of Philadelphia Re: School Facilities Plan Feb. 26, 2026 DOWNLOAD PDF Good evening, board members. My name is Symbol Lai. I’m with Children First. I’m testifying about the school district’s facilities plan. I want to thank the district...
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Education
Statement: Parents & Students Deserve Guarantees in the SDP Facilities Plan
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE In Philadelphia, providing a world class public education to every student is a daunting challenge due to decades of underfunding that starved our schools of essential resources and robbed our students of opportunity. Nevertheless, we must...
ICE & Education Funding, What’s the Connection?
WHERE YOUR TAX DOLLARS ARE GOING From our nation’s capital to small-town PA, taxpayers are footing a hefty bill for the chaos that ICE is creating. Starting tomorrow, the agencies within the Department of Homeland Security will either shut down or work...
Budget Wins For Kids
With Disappointment at the Federal Level, Pennsylvania's State Budget is a WIN for Kids. Ask most Pennsylvanians how they would grade the performance of their state and federal representatives and senators and they’d generously give them an F. In our...
REPORT: Supporting All Young Learners to Thrive
Exclusionary discipline in early childhood education (ECE), including suspension, expulsion, and informal removals (soft suspensions), disrupts learning during children’s most critical years and disproportionately impacts Black children, Hispanic boys, and children...
Getting the rug pulled out from under them
Schools Forced to Make Due with Less Sometimes local reporting gets to the heart of an issue. Evan Brandt, the intrepid Pottstown Mercury journalist, wrote a compelling article on education funding that gets right to the point. Here is an excerpt of his full...
Video: Parents Growing Together Symposium
Parents today are balancing the demands of work, child care, and household responsibilities while striving to nurture their children’s growth. Low-wealth families have the added worry of limited resources; families of color also face systemic oppressions. This results...
REPORT: Technical Education Teacher Shortage: Solutions for Pennsylvania
High school Career and Technical Education programs are a critical pathway for states to prepare for and meet current and future workforce needs. Pennsylvania’s career and technical educator licensure requirements for the Instructor II certificate are out of step with...
Waving the White Flag
WAVING THE WHITE FLAG Earlier this week, the Trump Administration signaled its new purpose for the only federal agency focused on children, the Office of Children and Families. Their revised vision is framed as "…embracing the fundamental principle that the best...
The Nation’s Report Card
WHY ARE SO MANY STUDENTS FAILING MATH AND SCIENCE ASSESSMENTS? It's beyond depressing that two thirds of American high school seniors cannot do high school level math or science and a majority struggle with high school level English skills. Also depressing is...