Philadelphia Officials Seeking School Funding Increase

The Philadelphia Inquirer (5/10, Warner, Graham) reports that Philadelphia city officials and state legislators "pledged their strongest efforts Thursday to find an additional $180 million for the School District, as about 300 students marched peacefully to City Hall, asking the government to 'save our schools.'" The officials committed to meeting the School Reform Commission's "request for $180 million in additional funding...to stop cutbacks beyond those the SRC has already imposed."

The Philadelphia Inquirer (5/10, Graham) reports in a separate article that the protesting students were opposing "budget cuts that threaten to strip their schools of counselors and support staff, swell class sizes, and chop all extracurricular activities." Student organizers said that the "heard Friday about what the cuts would mean," and quickly decided to protest the cuts.