Democratic gubernatorial candidate John Hanger is going to be in Bradford on Thursday as part of a statewide “Save Our Schools” bus tour.
Hanger, who is the former secretary of the state Department of Environmental Protection and former commissioner of the Public Utility Commission, is scheduled to speak at 9 a.m. Thursday in front of the Kennedy Street Cafe.
Ed Boito, field director with the Hanger for Governor campaign, explained Monday that the tour will be in front of the Coudersport courthouse at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday; and on Thursday, in Bradford at 9 a.m.; at the Johnsonburg Senior Center at 11:30 a.m.; in St. Marys at 1:30 p.m. at a location to be announced; and in front of the Cameron County Courthouse at 3:30 p.m.
“We’re out to save our schools,” Boito said. “John’s big push is public education. He wants to see more money flowing to public education.”
Boito explained state money has dropped to about 35 percent of a school district’s budget, when it should be at 55 percent.
Hanger wants to increase the funding to public schools, and “cut funding to under-performing and failing charter schools and cyber charter schools,” Boito said.
When a child decides to go to a charter school, “he takes the money with him,” Boito said. “It’s decimating our public school budgets.”
Hanger wants to make school funding less political, and focus more on funding public education.
Boito said Hanger was unveiling a funding plan for higher education on Monday as well. He is advocating the creation of the “Keystone College Fund,” in which any Pennsylvania resident would be able to attend two years of community college or one year at a public university without paying tuition.
“When they do graduate and become employed, the fund would require them to pay a percent of their earnings into the fund,” he explained.
In a press release issued Monday, Hanger said, “My proposal makes higher education affordable for all Pennsylvanians and can be implemented immediately. This proposal would be initially financed with a $1.5 billion bond and a total of $3.4 billion of bond financing over 10 years. The fund would become self-sustaining through graduate repayments within 22.5 years. This will end the era of crushing college debt that can follow students and families to the grave.
If a student attended a community college, that repayment rate would be 1.2 percent of his or her salary. For a state school, the student would have to repay 1.4 percent of his salary. For a state-related school, the student would have to pay back 2.2 percent of his salary.
The repayment plans would be over a 15-year period.
The schools would be paid for tuition out of the Keystone College Fund as well. “After a period of 20 years, it would be completely self-sustaining,” Boito said.
For more information on Hanger or his campaign, visit the website hangerforgovernor.com.
