Educators, parents, superintendents, state representatives and more participated in the Lehigh Valley for All Education Summit Jan. 23. At around 6:30 p.m., residents of the Lehigh Valley gathered at the Steelworkers Union Hall in Bethlehem to learn the facts about education equality and school funding issues.

Speakers at the event included BASD Superintendent Joseph Roy, Allentown School District school board member CeCe Gerlach, Angela Zanelli-Campaign Director for Lehigh Valley Reads, Lisa Pluchinsky-principal of The Lehigh Valley Dual Language Charter School, The Parkland School District Superintendent Richard Sniscak, Mike Faccinetto-President of the Bethlehem Area School District school board, Angela Sinkler-board member of the Bethlehem Area School District, Emily Schenkel- a parent of the Bethlehem Area School District, State Representative Steve Samuelson, and State Representative Mike Schlossberg.

Most of the speakers touched on the topic of Pennsylvania state funding and how money is distributed amongst the various public, charter, and online charter schools of the Lehigh Valley. Many of the speakers felt that charter schools- both brick and mortar and cyber- are not being equally evaluated when it comes to funding. This, in turn, results in an excess of taxpayer’s dollars going towards these institutions who may not necessarily need the full amount they are receiving. Joseph Roy, Superintendent of the Bethlehem Area School District, referenced the “funding formula” whose goal is to equitably distribute resources to schools based on the needs of the students and their surroundings. Poverty level, location, and educational necessities are just a few of the many factors that are to be looked at when the funding formula is being calculated.

The panel speakers explained their thoughts on how schools are evaluated and the way in which charter schools divert money from traditional public-school funding. According to Roy, if the money resulting from the PA funding formula was distributed accurately amongst the 500 school districts, Bethlehem would receive almost $22 million. “This would solve all of our budget problems-plus,” he stated. The PA funding dollars in the stream are not equaling out to the full amount that it should be with one issue being the diversion of tax dollars to charter schools.

Richard Sniscak also spoke on this topic, explaining that Pennsylvania funding faces many challenges and costs are constantly rising. Sniscak mentioned that charter school costs often times tax the traditional public-school budget. Along with this, Sniscak explained that the excessively high tuition rate for cyber charter schools has caused a significant deficit for public school dollars. There are many high performing public and charter schools in the area as well as those who do not reach certain standards. One of the situations at hand is finding out which of the schools are reaching top levels and which are not.

Susan Spika presented a PowerPoint to residents, explaining the distribution of money amongst public and charter schools and how charter schools are not held to the same standards of accountability as public schools when it comes to the spending of taxpayer money. Spika expressed the importance of Harrisburg legislatures to look into state budgeting and work on fixing the inadequate funding system for schools in Pennsylvania. Spika also discussed the importance of looking into the quality of certain charter schools-specifically cyber- and determining whether their level of educating students is worth taking half a billion dollars from taxpayers. She also discussed the evaluation of students with disabilities and working towards matching the cost of that students needs with the dollars that the charter schools receive. Spika explained that some charter schools do not use the full tuition dollars charged for certain disabled students and therefore make a profit off the money not used for the student’s educational benefit. When it comes to charter schools, Spika mentioned that there is a lot that can be done to bring money back into public schools and how important it is for community members to get involved by speaking to individuals in Harrisburg about this topic. Attendees were urged to add their name to the email list as one of the first steps in getting involved.

Lisa Pluchinsky, principal of the Lehigh Valley Dual Language Charter School spoke as not only a representative of her specific school but for charter schools whose main goal is to educate their students. Pluchinsky explained that there are many charter schools in the Lehigh Valley and across the state of Pennsylvania that focus on providing education for their students. However, Pluchinsky did mention that she would like to see every charter school follow the same set of rules to avoid the slander of the charter school reputation. She explained that the Lehigh Valley Dual Language Charter School is data driven, ensuring that the students needs are met based on information they provide. She added that not every charter is out to make money or some sort of personal gain.

There are many charter schools that follow the standards set in place and Pluchinsky would like to see the others do the same.