Toomey for Senate

Allentown, PA – U.S. Senate candidate Pat Toomey praised the Obama administration for actively supporting charter schools and merit-based pay for teachers.

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan kicked off his promotional tour in favor of charter schools in Philadelphia yesterday at the Mastery Charter School. Philadelphia schools were long plagued by underperformance when the state seized its school system seven years ago and turned over 46 of the city’s lowest performing schools to private organizations, including for-profit companies. The stop in Philadelphia yesterday was part of a tour to push other cities and states to open up their school systems to charter schools.

“The greatest thing we can do for our education system is to inject competition and choice into the process,” said Mr. Toomey. “No institution should have a monopoly on the education of our children, and no parent should be forced to send their children to a school that does not adequately meet their educational needs.”

“Charter schools are not a cure-all, but they are an important part of the solution. Many charter schools across the country have shown remarkable success where traditional public schools have failed. No two children are the same, and while one child may thrive in a traditional public school setting, another child may need a different environment. Because they are freed from many of the rules that restrict standard public schools, charter schools are able to offer specialized curricula and adopt new and innovating teaching techniques to meet a wider array of student needs. That’s why charter schools are so successful, with over 1.3 million children attending charter schools this year nationwide and about 50,000 in Pennsylvania. President Obama and Secretary Duncan deserve credit for promoting such an important part of education reform in this country.”