Corbetts response to an online letter about school funding and safety (PLEASE READ!!!): Good Afternoon: I received your recent correspondence regarding the death of a young child at Andrew Jackson Elementary School in Philadelphia. As a parent and grandparent, I can only imagine how heartbreaking this loss is for the child’s family, classmates, teachers and friends. I offer my sincere condolences to the family of the child, and I want to commend the staff at Jackson Elementary for their prompt response. As you may know, the Philadelphia School District is following regulations, similar to every other school district in Pennsylvania, for staffing their schools with school nurses. In Philadelphia’s case, as you reference in your email, that nursing decision was made five years ago, prior to me taking office, by the school district administration. Faculty and support staff across the Commonwealth are trained in First Aid/CPR to intervene in case of an emergency – as was done by the staff at Andrew Jackson Elementary School this week. Putting the safety and educational needs of our students first must continue to be our top priority. There is an appropriate time and place to call for education policy discussions. Right now, our thoughts should be with the childs family, friends, school and community who have all been through an extremely traumatic situation. I am deeply troubled that the union leadership of the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers – and by extension the American Federation of Teachers – would use the recent tragedy at Jackson Elementary as an opportunity to make a political statement. For more than a year, we all have asked the union leadership – who are disconnected from the great teachers in Philadelphia who are in the classroom every day – to come to the table and engage in meaningful negotiations to assist in the financial recovery of the Philadelphia School District. The Commonwealth, the School District, the School Reform Commission and City Council are all working to contribute to the success of Philadelphia’s schools and students. I will continue to ask the union leadership to put the children of Philadelphia first and engage in a meaningful dialogue and a shared vision for the future of the children of Philadelphia. Sincerely, Tom Corbett
Posted on: Fri, 23 May 2014 20:39:24 +0000
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