When Matt and I first met I was working for a staffing company. I was a recruiter at the time and quickly got promoted to a sales manager. I worked in an office with other 20-somethings who were full of energy, praise, and an eagerness to make money. Money motivated us, and we all made a good amount.
I was happy with my paycheck, but I wasn’t fulfilled as a person.
Originally I had gone to college to be a teacher. I never graduated and was starting to feel a constant pull to return to complete my degree. Shortly after Matt and I were married, I quit my job and went back to school. In 2001, I got a job as an inclusion aide in one of the wealthiest school districts in the suburbs of Philadelphia. I worked in the classroom during the day and took classes at night.
This suburb school wanted for nothing. The biggest downfall, if you could call it that, was that every parent wanted to help and be involved, but there wasn’t enough time or space for them all. There were approximately 16 students per class in the younger grades and 24 students per class in the older grades. The school had a computer lab with a smart board and two computers in every classroom. They had a technology teacher and a mobile cart with enough laptops for an entire classroom. This was in 2001 so a computer for an entire class of students was pretty cutting edge back then. The students also had gym, music, art, health, and library.
My first teaching job was in the School District of Philadelphia in 2004. I was beyond thrilled to get a job and felt more than prepared. I was ready to change the world.
Except that I wasn’t.
The first time I stepped into the school, my heart raced with excitement. I spent the last two years finishing my teaching degree and dreaming about my own classroom. All the assessments, projects, observations, and certification tests resulted in this moment.
I walked up three flights of stairs in an un-air-conditioned building to my classroom. I thought it was the most beautiful classroom I had ever seen. And then I looked at my chalkboard. It took a minute but I noticed there was a hole in it.
There was a bullet hole in my chalkboard.
While the neighborhood was a tough one, for sure, there was no way the bullet hole resulted from a stray bullet from the street below. My classroom was too high off the ground and the chalkboard was no-where near the windows. This bullet must have been shot from a gun within my classroom walls.
I’d be lying if I said my husband wasn’t nervous about me teaching there. He assured me that I didn’t need to take this job. I could be a substitute teacher until I found a new teaching position in the suburbs. I was adamant that these kids needed teachers and I wanted to stay.
The city school was lacking. It appeared as though all of the students required essay help. It had few parents who wanted or could volunteer. I started out with 24 students in a classroom but ended the year with 38. We didn’t have a computer lab. In fact, I can’t remember even having a computer. The specials were a little different than regular schools. There was a gym/ health class, music, and science class. Science was taught as a special, and not integrated as a regular part of the curriculum. We had a beautiful library in our building but the students weren’t allowed to use it unsupervised and we didn’t have a librarian to supervise them. They weren’t even allowed to check the books out for fear that they would be lost or damaged. I was given one ream of paper a month to make copies. I rarely used worksheets, and still, one ream of paper didn’t go far.
I couldn’t get over how these two schools that I worked at were so vastly different. Granted, the schools were in different school districts and residents paid different amounts of taxes, but the students weren’t even on a level playing field. The suburb school had access to all of the newest technology at school when it was highly likely they had access to it at home, as well. The city school students weren’t even allowed to read their library books. If you’re a parent in PA, you will almost certainly be looking for the best educational institution, with none of the downfalls of the ones I have mentioned, for your child and a great school like The Christian Academy is where they can be found.
That’s why I decided to partner with the Campaign for Fair Education Funding. I’m planning on working with them to bring more attention to the fact that Pennsylvania is one of only three states that does not have a Basic Education Funding formula to distribute dollars fairly. I know that it’s difficult to ensure that students get the same advantages but if it’s not made a priority, then the students on the lower end of the socio-economic scale – both in urban and rural areas – will remain there for years to come.
You can get involved too! It doesn’t take a lot of work on your part to let your local legislators know how you feel. You can learn more by visiting the Campaign for Fair Education Funding website. Be sure to follow the campaign on Facebook and Twitter.
We’re also speaking out for students as a family.
I sat Katherine and Caroline down to ask them some questions about their school. They attend a Montessori school, which was a hard decision for us since I was a public school teacher. The girls will eventually transition to a public school in the 4th grade.
Listen to Katherine’s clip here.
Listen to Caroline’s clip here.
As a little girl I dreamed of becoming a teacher. I made everyone I know play “school” and I was always the teacher. Now as an adult I dream of what it could mean to have more fair education funding. I don’t know if I will ever return to the classroom to teach children but regardless, I dream that they’ll all have the same opportunities.
xoxo
–k
I’m teaming up with the Campaign for Fair Education Funding to speak out for students across Pennsylvania. Although I am receiving some form of compensation, all opinions remain my own. #FairFundingPA
Kristina Grum is a Certified Parent Educator who has over a decade of experience working with children, including being a classroom teacher. She currently teaches parenting classes in her local area and writes about shifting parenthood from barely surviving to thriving.
