HARRISBURG, Pa. - As summer draws to a close, roughly 1.7 million kids in Pennsylvania are getting ready to head back to school. What they're likely to find when they get there are bigger class sizes, fewer teachers and not as many programs as they used to have.

At issue is what the Pennsylvania State Education Association says is a fiscal crisis facing schools. PSEA President Mike Crossey traced the problem to the education cuts pushed by Governor Tom Corbett since he took office.

"That's three years that they're short almost a billion dollars every year," the teachers' union leader said. "If you look at that cumulatively, they're several billion dollars in the hole. You know, then he turns around and he says schools are failing."

Corbett has blamed a $4 billion budget deficit for the need to slash education funding.

Crossey declared that the Corbett deficit defense falls short when it comes to corporate tax breaks.

"While this governor cut a billion dollars from our school districts, he turned around and he's given out, since he's been in, new tax cuts to corporations of $1.3 billion."

Crossey said Corbett also has eliminated a school funding formula, used before he took office, designed to make school funding equitable based on need. According to Crossey, the new math doesn't add up.

"The Wyomissing School District, which is a pretty wealthy school district, their cut per student was about $115 per student under this Governor's budget. (In) Reading, the poorest city in America, (in) the school district there, the students were cut $1138 per student. "

A recent report by the Pennsylvania Association of School Business Officials and the Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators shows that three out of four school districts plan to reduce instructional programming in the upcoming school year, half plan to increase class sizes and more districts have either already cut or are likely to cut elective courses, full-day kindergarten, tutoring and summer school programs.

See the full report mentioned in this story at pasa-net.org.




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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- The youngest students, along with faculty and staff, will need to mask up in the Rio Rancho schools when classes begin next Monday.

In a 3-2 decision, the Rio Rancho School Board decided this week all elementary students and faculty will need to wear masks to protect them from COVID-19, while middle and high schoolers will not, if they can provide proof they are vaccinated.

Billie Helean, president of the Rio Rancho School Employees Union, is convinced it is the best way to keep staff and students safe in a difficult environment.

"Even though the masks are kind-of a pain, we know that," Helean acknowledged. "However, we all know that being in person is the best way to learn. Students get the most from their teachers and from their peers when they're in person."

Rio Rancho middle- and high-school students return to classrooms on Thursday, August 5, with elementary students going back on Monday, August 9. The Rio Rancho guidelines align with the New Mexico Public Education Department's decision to ease mask requirements for vaccinated students in upper grades, but requiring them for all primary students.

To reach out to parents to share what to expect when school starts, Helean pointed out the teacher's union and school district have used billboards, print ads, flyers, social media and other channels.

"Canvassing with door hangers for families, so that they understand that school is in session it's 100%, and that we are ready to welcome every single student back to those safe learning environments," Helean explained.

Helean added they are also taking steps in the classrooms to encourage safety.

"Things like marking the floors to help students visualize being socially distant, ensuring that students are at least three feet apart in the classroom, sanitizing procedures," Helean outlined.

Rio Rancho Public Schools announced it will not segregate students at the secondary level based on vaccination status. More than 56 million students attend public and private elementary, middle and high schools in the United States.

AMARILLO, Texas - The American Farm Bureau Federation hosts more than 100 college level chapters across 35 states, but this is the first time its program has been introduced in Texas - to attract a new generation to farming.

Junior Kaysi LaPoint knew her favorite childhood moments were spent on a farm, and she's leveraging that insight to lead one of the first chapters of the Collegiate Farm Bureau at West Texas A&M University.

A Colorado native, LaPoint visited a farm owned by her extended family as a child. She's now studying animal science and agriculture business and economics, and attending conferences to learn as much as possible.

"I got to talk to peanut farmers, rice farmers," said LaPoint. "You know, these commodities we don't grow in Colorado. So, hearing from those different producers and getting their perspective is really neat."

In addition to West Texas A&M in the panhandle, Sam Houston State University in Huntsville has launched a Collegiate Farm Bureau - with Midwestern State University, Tarleton State University and Vernon College also planning to launch chapters.

Whit Weems, director of organization with the Texas Farm Bureau, said the program is valuable because college students can network with others who like the idea of farming, or finding an ag-related job that fits their skills.

"You don't have to be an ag major to be in the Collegiate Farm Bureau program," said Weems. "There's opportunities in agriculture beyond just the farm. There's so many different sectors to agriculture and supporting roles."

LaPoint said it still surprises her when people her age don't know where their food comes from.

"I had a classmate in middle school who said, 'Wait! Raisins and grapes are the same thing? I thought raisins were their own plant,'" said LaPoint. "And people who think pickles and cucumbers are two different things."

As older producers on farms and ranches retire, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says only about 2% of Americans now work in the agriculture industry - and the average age of an American farmer is about 57.

Support for this reporting was provided by Lumina Foundation.

BOSTON - Educators' unions are calling on the state to support their efforts to ensure in-person learning in the fall keeps students, teachers, families and staff safe.

With the Delta variant making its way through the nation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued guidance this week recommending that all teachers, students and staff in K-12 schools wear masks, even if they've received a COVID vaccine.

Merrie Najimy, president of the Massachusetts Teachers Association, said this guidance is welcome. With kids under 12 still not approved to receive the vaccine and the vaccination rate among 12 to 15-year-olds still low, Najimy said she thinks other strategies are needed.

"We can have full, in-person learning as safely as possible this fall," said Najimy. "Masking was one of three or four critical mitigation strategies that really helped control transmission in the school buildings."

She added that another critical piece is school buildings' ventilation systems - she said many districts have schools that need upgrades.

The union is also is urging the Commonwealth to provide continued free and accessible COVID testing.

Najimy noted that while being vaccinated is enough to protect most people, COVID still poses a risk to children under 12 or people whose immune systems don't respond to the vaccine.

She added communities of color have been hit the hardest by the pandemic, and feels there is a collective responsibility to ensure that everybody is safe.

"We have the right formula to do that in schools," said Najimy. "It's ventilation, masking, distancing, hand-washing, and testing. So, there's no reason why the state can't step up and provide the leadership that we need at this moment."

The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education had been planning to lift all COVID restrictions in schools this fall, and Gov. Charlie Baker said prior to the updated recommendations that he wasn't considering a mask mandate.

This week, his office said it will review the updated CDC guidance.