Forrest Urges Pressuring Legislators for Fair Funding

In addition to being a former administrator for the Pottstown School District, Myra Forrest also served as the first executive director of the Foundation for Pottstown Education.

Blogger's Note: The following was submitted by Debra Brauner.

On Sunday, March 7, more than 50 Pottstown and surrounding area residents participated online in the third of six scheduled community forums, Seeking Balance: Fairness in Educational Funding in Pennsylvania.

Organized by First Baptist Church, Pottstown, in cooperation with Zion’s United Church of Christ, Trinity Reformed United Church of Christ, Bethel Community Church, First Presbyterian Church, Congregation Hesed Shel Emet, six forums are designed to inform and spark dialogue in the community addressing Pennsylvania’s unfair funding policies.

In the first forum, Feb. 21, David Mosenkis, representing POWER Interfaith, a statewide faith-based organizing group, presented data-driven evidence showing the dramatic difference in per pupil state and local funding between high and low poverty districts and how that funding disparity is driven by and perpetuates racial inequities.

Stephen Rodriguez, Superintendent of Schools for the Pottstown School District, was the presenter for the second forum, offered on February 28. Mr. Rodriguez focused his presentation on the role of taxation in educational funding in Pennsylvania in general and Pottstown in particular.

In the third forum on March 7, Myra Forrest, Education Advocate for the Pottstown Area Health and Wellness Foundation, spoke about the call to action sent to Pennsylvania legislators to address inequities. The current bias in educational funding consistently harms students of color and students from very poor communities. 

Click here to watch a video of her full presentation.

Forrest shared that the racial makeup of the Pottstown School District is approximately two-thirds people of color and 65 percent of the students live in poverty, noting the relationship with PA state underfunding.

Forrest stated that there is a high correlation between the quality of education that students receive (the better the education, the better the outcome) and the following areas: educational attainment, health outcomes, economic achievement. Dr. Forrest added, “It is immoral and unethical not to care for all of the students in Pennsylvania.”

Recapping some of the data regarding educational funding inequities shared in the prior forums, Dr. Forrest documented specific ways in which the underfunding of the Pottstown School District directly impacts the district’s students and the community.

Underfunding to Pottstown School District results in these cuts:

• No elementary school counselors
• No middle school foreign language classes
• No intramural after school activities, athletic and non-athletic
• No budget for school sponsored field trips
• No budget for sending staff members to professional development seminars and conferences
• The curriculum budget for new educational materials has remained static for a decade.

In addition to substantial cuts, Dr. Forrest stated that extreme underfunding has resulted in these services/programs being limited:

• Transportation limited to 5th grade students only
• Only 6 AP courses at the high school
• Nurses and librarians shared between elementary schools’ at each school only 2.5 days/week
• Limited number of sports teams and coaching positions due to lack of funds
• Facilities and equipment are out of date for academics
• Pottstown School District has the lowest paid teachers and administrators in Montgomery 
• County

The pandemic has further illuminated the disparity between the districts. Forrest noted that when students statewide were sent home on March 13, 2020, many wealthier districts were able to begin virtual learning on March 16. The challenges faced by the Pottstown School District (lack of student laptops, internet service, training with computers) delayed virtual learning until May, leaving Pottstown students at a disadvantage. 

“Pottstown students and faculty need and deserve an equitable funding model to be totally implemented to level the playing field for our children.”

When asked what actions can be taken to advocate for equitable funding, Forrest suggested calling and writing legislators. She suggested sharing personal stories of how you or your child are affected by inequitable funding. 

“Unless they hear from constituents, things will go along as usual. Be active! Do something!”

A recording of each forum and PowerPoint presentations is on the First Baptist Church website at: www.fbcpottstown.org. Click on the tab for “School Funding Forum.”

On Sunday, March 14th at 4:15 PM, Ms. Laura Johnson, Pottstown School District Board of Directors and Co-founder of Pennsylvanians for Fair Funding, will discuss how inequitable education funding affects every aspect of our community, from students not receiving the same educational opportunities as their neighbors, to undercutting the economic outlook for families, to depressing community morale. 

She will also talk about the advocacy efforts of Pennsylvanians for Fair Funding, a statewide grassroots coalition which started here in Pottstown.

The Zoom meeting link for each of the Sunday forums may be found on the First Baptist Church website on the “School Funding Forum” tab.