NESQUEHONING, Pa. — Amanda Kusko's third-grade classroom at Panther Valley Elementary in Nesquehoning is stocked with everything her students need, but Kusko bought most of her paper, decorations, and other supplies with her own paycheck.
The Panther Valley School District can only afford to give each teacher a hundred dollars a year for classroom essentials , and it's not enough.
“That has been the common practice for so long that I don't think they realize how that was funded previously,” said Principal Robert Palazzo, Panther Valley Elementary.
But after a Commonwealth Court Judge ruled last week that the state's school funding formula is unconstitutional, low-income school districts such as panther valley hope to finally get the funding they need to provide better resources to students and staff.
“Our starting salary is close to $10,000 less than neighboring schools just because of how our funding source works out. So our hope is that we can attract and retain across the school buildings,” Palazzo added.
The judge's ruling dates back to a lawsuit filed against the state by Panther Valley, Shenandoah Valley, Wilkes-Barre Area, and several other school districts.
“We feel strongly that the state government needs to fund districts like Panther Valley that have an 80% poverty rate in an equitable way,” Palazzo explained.
The lawsuit finally went to trial last year when Commonwealth Court Judge Renee Cohn Jubelirer heard arguments from both sides. Those arguments included testimony from the Panther Valley Superintendent.
Superintendent McAndrew testified himself , advocating for panther valley and other school districts throughout Pennsylvania that are in need of more equitable state funding.
After fighting for equitable school funding across Pennsylvania for nearly a decade, the efforts paid off with the ruling from commonwealth court.
Declaring that Pennsylvania's school funding formula must be reformed.
“So we knew that people may have thought this is unethical, but finally, to have a judge say that this is unconstitutional is two different things. And we're ecstatic about that ruling, and we really want to move forward with this. We know this is not going to be easy fixing the system, but we don't want to see it delayed,” explained Superintendent Dave McAndrew.
The commonwealth court ruling could be appealed, but educators in Panther Valley hope lawmakers start working on a new and fairer school funding formula as soon as possible.
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