Retired teacher keeps feeding Deer Lakes students
Retired Deer Lakes teacher Carol McCaskey was tired of seeing students come to school with a stomachache. “Us teachers knew the truth. We knew it was because they didn’t have food at home,” said McCaskey, who spent nearly three decades at East Union Intermediate...Your View: Pa. should cancel student lunch debt across the state
The Pennsylvania Cancel Lunch Debt Coalition is on a mission to abolish lunch debt in Pennsylvania. Our campaign started a couple of years ago when we were able to work with Bristol Borough School District in Bucks County to cancel over $20,000 of lunch debt. We are...Universal Lunch initiative would mean free meals for all students, regardless of family income
Hungry kids can quickly turn into hangry students. Rumbling stomachs can lead to classroom distraction and discipline issues, research shows, along with feelings of isolation for children whose families struggle to afford school lunches. “Not only do we see the...LGBTQ+ advocacy group Fairness Pennsylvania launches
Fairness Pennsylvania, a lobbying group, launched Monday during the first week of Pride Month.
It will work with members of the General Assembly on the wording of bills geared toward protecting LGBTQ+ rights. It’s the state’s first full-time lobbying group focused on LGBTQ+ issues.
“The launch of Fairness PA will give every person the opportunity to learn about the realities facing our LGBTQ+ friends, family, and colleagues while working towards fostering nondiscrimination principles across the Commonwealth,” said Fairness PA state director Sarah Hammond in a statement.
Advocates who won Pa. education lawsuit call for a $2 billion ‘down payment’ on fair funding
Advocates who fought for and won a historic court ruling declaring Pennsylvania’s education funding system unconstitutional said Thursday that they’re ready to go back to court if state lawmakers and Gov. Josh Shapiro fail to make a significant down payment on a...State arts council distributes $2.3 million to arts groups
Gov. Tom Wolf announced Monday that 309 nonprofit arts organizations will receive grants totaling $2.3 million to help with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The funds from the federal CARES Act support staff salaries, facilities costs and fees for artists or...Pa. just eliminated general assistance. The need for it hasn’t gone away
By Katie Muth, Maria Collett and Lindsey Williams
This week marks the end of General Assistance (GA) as we know it. The life-saving program that has helped thousands of Pennsylvanians get back on their feet and bridge the gap to self-sustainability ended on Aug. 1.
After a difficult battle through the legislative process and an underhanded maneuver to tie the elimination of GA to millions of dollars of hospitals, we accept that the program will cease to exist. However, that does not mean that the need has vanished.