Keefer to introduce resolution also calling for elimination of Department of Education

Following yesterday’s Executive Order from the White House calling for the Secretary of Education to “take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education, state Sen. Dawn Keefer (R-Cumberland/York) is planning to introduce a resolution that calls for the same to reaffirm Pennsylvania’s “sovereign authority” over its educational system.

The first-term senator wants to build upon President Donald Trump’s executive order which lays the groundwork for “returning control of education to where it belongs – at the state and local levels.”

Her co-sponsorship memo says that “For over four decades, the U.S. Department of Education has exerted excessive federal influence, spending billions of taxpayer dollars annually with little measurable progress. Student performance has remained stagnant since the 1990s, with 70 percent of eighth graders nationwide falling below reading standards and 72 percent failing to meet math proficiency. In Pennsylvania, these federal mandates have hindered our ability to address the unique needs of our 1.56 million public school students. This overreach has failed to improve educational outcomes, proving that centralized control is no substitute for state-led solutions.”

Keefer’s goal would be to “restore education to its rightful place under state control, as prescribed by the Constitution, increase accountability for taxpayer dollars, and empower Pennsylvania to design and implement education policies that reflect the priorities and needs of our communities.”

State Democratic leaders were quick to denounce Trump’s Executive Order.

“The US Department of Education plays a critical role in ensuring that every single student, especially our students with disabilities, receives an excellent public-school education surrounded by adults who care about them,” said Senate Democratic Leader Jay Costa (D-Allegheny) and Senate Democratic Education Chair Lindsey Williams (D-Allegheny) in a statement. “In Pennsylvania, we rely on the US Department of Education for $1.45 billion in education support funding, $3.3 million in mental health services funding, and $238.1 million in workforce development funding. On the higher education front, the destruction of the Department of Education stands to cost our Commonwealth $68.9 billion in federal student loans, which support over 1.8 million Pennsylvanians.

“Dismantling the US Department of Education will do nothing to improve students’ math and literacy skills, nor will it lower property taxes; on the contrary, this order will serve only to clear the way for rolling back the civil rights of our students and unleashing untold discrimination without consequences.

“Dismantling the federal Department of Education is not eliminating fraud and abuse, it is eliminating federal support for students with disabilities and eliminating teaching positions that serve students who live in poverty,” said Billy Hileman, president of the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers. “Stealing opportunity from our most vulnerable children simply to pay for additional tax cuts for billionaires is immoral. The PFT condemns the Trump administration’s shameful and callous disregard for the children who need our help the most.”

Keefer, a staunch supporter of Trump and his policies, is also a co-sponsor of the “Save Women’s Sports Act” or Senate Bill 9 that would ensure that school athletic teams designated for women would not be open to those of the male sex.

Steve Ulrich is the managing editor of PoliticsPA.

This article was originally published in PoliticsPA.