Building a Better Student-to-Teacher Pipeline Can Ease Staffing Crisis
By Senator Vincent Hughes and Sharif El-Mekki
A decade ago, Pennsylvania certified 20,000 new teachers. Last year, that number was down to 6,000. Chronic understaffing, along with underfunding, is driving increased burnout and shorter teaching careers.
That loss of teachers is particularly concerning among communities of color which make up 37 percent of the student body, but only 7 percent of teachers.
Republican Reopening Scam Is the Worst Kind of Politics
In the last few weeks, Pennsylvania Republicans have ramped up the political theatre in a brazen attempt at politicizing the Wolf Administration’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. From staged political rallies organized by out-of-state, extreme right-wing...
The Children of Philadelphia Have Been Attending Toxic Schools for Years. This Is a National Crisis
The children of Philadelphia are in dire need of our help. They are at the mercy of a man-made, ticking time bomb that is nearly inescapable. I’m talking about toxic schools. Conditions in Philadelphia schools have needed a remedy for many years. Lead, asbestos,...
Senate Democrats Call for Action on Poverty and Income Insecurity
Pennsylvania Senate Democrats Call for Action on Poverty and Economic Insecurity in Pennsylvania April 4 marked the 51st anniversary of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Memphis, Tennessee. To honor Dr. King’s memory, Pennsylvania Senate Democrats...
No more silence: Why our community must address mental health
Depression. Anxiety. Mood disorders. Dementia.
We hear about these and other mental health afflictions in our regular conversations, on television shows and even in our music, but it remains a consistent public health crisis in the black community because of the stigma surrounding topic.
We must act to stop crumbling schools in Philadelphia, across Pa.
Our schools are crumbling. Before the Inquirer reported on the deplorable conditions in Philadelphia schools, I heard that message from parents and students and even viewed it with my own eyes while visiting city schools. Seeing the conditions in which some of our...
Redlining is keeping people of color out of homes
The practice of redlining, which segregated communities and prevented minorities from achieving home ownership as their version of the American Dream, appears to be alive and well in our city and many communities across the nation. The Fair Housing Act of 1968 should...
Action to Address Worker Wages First Step on Long Road to Equity
Frustrated by years of resistance from legislative Republicans to raise worker wages, Gov. Tom Wolf announced plans to lift the state’s salary threshold below which Pennsylvania salaried workers automatically receive overtime pay. The governor’s action is...
Philadelphia Takes Control of Schools, but State Still Owes Pupils
Op-ed by Vincent Hughes Mayor Kenney said he wanted to end state oversight of the School District of Philadelphia as a necessary step toward reclaiming local control of our public schools. Now, with the action by the School Reform Commission to disband, control of the...
Democratic Senators to Gov. Wolf and General Assembly: Make Rebuilding Manufacturing a Priority
Op-ed by state Sen. John T. Yudichak, Sen. Vincent J. Hughes, Sen. Jim Brewster
October 23, 2017 − National Manufacturing Day is the first Friday in October. While noting the importance of manufacturing on this one day is important, the focus on rebuilding our manufacturing base should be a priority for the governor and the General Assembly each day.