Public+education+supporters+ramp+up+rallies+with+call-ins

=By Eleanor Chute= =Published by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette= =3/5/12= = = = = =As the state House Appropriations Committee today conducts a hearing on state education spending, parents, students and other taxpayers will be calling legislators and the governor to urge them to spend more on public education.= ="It's a statewide call to action," said Susan Gobreski, executive director of Education Voters of Pennsylvania, which set the date for what she called a "pretty broad, grass-roots effort."= ="Our big point here is we want our legislators to find a way to sustainably and equitably fund public education," said Jessie Ramey of Point Breeze, parent of two Pittsburgh Colfax K-8 students and a founder of the blog Yinzercation.= =By her count, parents and community members from at least nine Pittsburgh public schools and 11 suburban schools will be participating.= =Some of them will have "sidewalk parties" before or after school, with banners, refreshments and cell phones parents can use.= =Ms. Ramey said the events were not organized by the schools themselves.= =Some high school students also are planning to get their peers to make calls.= =Pittsburgh Allderdice senior Nico Kass said students want to emphasize how the cuts affect them, such as increased class sizes.= ="I feel that I have received a first-rate education that has propelled me into a top college, and I am seeing the opportunity that I had taken away from those who are younger," he said.= =A+ Schools, a local public education advocacy organization, also has urged the public to call their legislators today.= =The effects of cuts made in this year's state budget are being felt now, including larger class sizes and fewer programs, Ms. Gobreski said.= =She said Gov. Tom Corbett's proposed budget would make that the "new normal."= =Kathy Newman of Squirrel Hill, a parent of a Pittsburgh Linden K-5 student, said cuts being made at that school "jolted me into action."= =The Corbett administration maintains that he has proposed increasing funding to public schools by $338.1 million.= =However, relatively little of that would provide additional resources to classrooms. Of the total increase, $315.8 million is allotted to cover the steadily increasing amount of employer contributions to pensions. Most of the rest is designated for Social Security and transportation costs.= =In addition, that figure doesn't consider the $100 million in accountability block grants now in the 2011-12 budget but not in Mr. Corbett's proposal. He didn't include accountability block grants in last year's proposal either, but the Legislature put the money in the budget.= =Today's hearing by the state House Appropriations Committee is part of a series of hearings on the proposed education budget. Today's session includes the state Department of Education, the state System of Higher Education and the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency.= = = =Read more: [|http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/12065/1214556-298.stm#ixzz1oF5Sxti9] = = = = = = = = = = = = = =News= =home=