Letters: Need for charter reform is clear; What’s not mentioned at Harris-Walz campaign events

Need for charter reform is clear

Therese Hollen, candidate for the PA House, believes that charter school funding is unclear and still open for debate. Here’s the truth: Public education dollars do “follow the student,” but the same rules and opportunities provided do not. Nearly all of the $3.6 million Bellefonte spends in charter tuition has to be made up by taxpayers. Comments that the “state has decided to funnel the funds for these students ... through public school districts” discounts our local heavy lifting of 64%.

Hollen is correct that students deserve “the best education” and “competition.” Then let’s compare our district’s graduation rate of 93% to the average 55% graduation rate at most cyber-charters. How about our state testing performance data? Ours wins every year, in every category and grade level.

I am not against brick and mortar charters, which have a legitimate place in our educational landscape. The problems lie in the over-funding of cyber-charters, schools with a fraction of the same cost. Let’s be real — being educated at home on a computer is drastically different. All of our local districts offer closely-monitored cyber options that are already paid for by taxpayers. Our in-house cyber option outperforms the for-profit, frequently-advertised (at our expense) schools at every turn. Right-to-Know requests have revealed that billionaire education management companies running the cyber giants are improperly using tuition dollars. I hope Ms. Hollen reconsiders her position on charter funding if she is truly interested in prioritizing Pennsylvanians. This letter expresses my views and not that of the BASD board.

Donna Smith, Bellefonte. The author is a Bellefonte Area School District board member.

What’s not mentioned at Harris-Walz campaign events

On Sept. 29, there were four letters to the editor favoring Democratic candidates and positions. One letter was against vice presidential candidate JD Vance without one fact presented to support the writer’s position. These writers and people displaying Harris-Walz yard signs must be pleased with:

• Inflation reached the highest level in 40 years under the Biden-Harris administration.
• Gas prices spiked over $4 a gallon.
• Millions of illegal immigrants have crossed the open southern border, including large numbers of criminals and terrorists. Drug trafficking and human smuggling continue with little action from the Biden-Harris Administration. Many migrant children are unaccounted for by immigration authorities. The exact numbers are unknown.
• Males by birth are competing in women’s sports.
• The retreat from Afghanistan was disastrous leaving 13 U.S. servicemembers dead and billions of dollars of modern weapon systems left behind. The retreat was a sign of weakness by the United States for world terrorists to create the following havoc: The Mideast in conflict with Israel attacked by terrorist groups supported by Iran; Ukraine invaded by Russia with a high number of combatants and civilians dead and wounded in two years; U.S. Naval and merchant ships have been attacked by terrorists positioned in Yemen, and U.S. ground troops attacked in Syria and Iraq; China is saber rattling about invading Taiwan.

No wonder these items are not mentioned by Harris-Walz at campaign events.

The former president may be rough and vocal at times, but he is a proven leader. Trump gets my vote.

John Diercks, State College

Gambling threatens most vulnerable

An increasingly addictive characteristic of our decision-making practices as 21st-century citizens directly coincides with the need for risk-taking and decision-making methods of professional gamblers. Risk-taking is certainly a necessary component in the creative process of musicians and artists. However, in the hands of the average, inexperienced gambler, the unpredictable risk juggles the paradox of life and the probability of imminent death. Our societies are overwhelmed by addictive behaviors that neutralize our disappearing humanity. We seem to be too willing to relinquish control perhaps out of restlessness, boredom, fear. Gambling is not the game it deludes us into thinking it is. Most of us have too much to lose to indulge in such reckless risk-taking, and the most vulnerable among us are always those whose losses are most dire.

Micaela Amateau Amato, Boalsburg

Honoring PA’s lunchroom heroes

Coming up, National School Lunch Week is an opportunity to tip the hat to the lunchroom heroes who ensure that students are fed and energized, many with the only meals they’ll receive each day. For the 1 in 6 children in Pennsylvania living with hunger, school nutrition staff make a world of difference by serving up regular, nutritious midday meals.

Studies show that school meals are the most nutritionally balanced meals that most children receive each day. They’re convenient, saving busy parents the work of preparing a daily lunch for their kids. They also create a sense of community as kids eat with peers and trusted adults. At No Kid Hungry, our mission is to work with school nutrition teams to keep school meals available so kids can focus on classwork and on just being kids.

Learning can be tough work — and kids need fuel to do it! A healthy midday meal is crucial to the growing children who go to school. The nutrition teams in Pennsylvania schools are providing that fuel, making sure that kids stay energized and on task for the job of learning. National School Lunch Week is a great chance to recognize their contributions to children’s success in and out of the classroom.

Ashley Roudebush, Washington, D,C. The author is the state campaign manager of No Kid Hungry Pennsylvania.