To: State Senator Jay Costa, D-Allegheny, State Senator Vincent Hughes, D-Phila./Montgomery, State Senator Dominic Pileggi, R-Delaware, State Senator Joseph Scarnati, R-Jefferson, and Governor Tom Wolf

STOP the Right-Wing Campaign to Dismantle Public Education in Pennsylvania

I urge you to support strong public schools for our children and the future of Pennsylvania over interests of weathly corporations.

Dismantling public education by cutting school budgets and privatizing schools hurts our children now – and it jeopardizes their future.

It also kills good jobs that our economy urgently needs. Many public school workers also are parents of school-age children. These families will get hit twice, with their kids losing access to decent public schools and parents losing jobs.

Many schools may be closed by 2013 – and by December 31, 2012 every single bus driver, bus attendant, custodian, engineer and maintenance worker will be out of a job in Philadelphia. Workers are offering to cut costs, save jobs and keep providing Philadelphia’s school children with a safe, clean, learning environment.

Please do the right thing. Protect our public schools in Pennsylvania.

Why is this important?

Just like Governor Scott Walker attacked collective bargaining rights of workers in Wisconsin, Governor Tom Corbett is bent on destroying public education in Pennsylvania.

We need to take action now and STOP the right-wing campaign to dismantle public education by cutting school budgets and privatizing schools. It hurts our children now and it jeopardizes their future. It is also killing good jobs that our economy urgently needs. Many public school workers also are parents of school-age children. These families will get hit twice, with their kids losing access to decent public schools and parents losing jobs.

There’s still a chance to save schools and jobs before budget talks end. Let’s put our children’s future above politics. Protect public education in Pennsylvania!

--Steve Siebert, Philadelphia Schools Maintenance Worker