Chester School District doesn’t want the dubious honor of being the first public school district in the nation to be handed over to a private company.  They just want the funding their entitled to, writes Kathleen E. Carey for Daily Times.

More than 50 people protested outside Chester High School Saturday.

State Sen. John Kane, D-9, whose district covers Chester, attended the rally.

It was organized by Delco Resists and Chester Upland parents.

Maura I. McInerney, an Education Law Center attorney representing Chester Upland, said Pennsylvania has the greatest disparities between rich and poor districts anywhere in the nation.

Racist policies keep Chester Upland underfunded and segregated, she said. It ranks in the bottom sixth of state contributions to education.

The district has to overly rely on property taxes, taxing at twice the rate of well-funded districts, she said.

There is a concern that if Chester-Upland schools can’t sustain itself with public funds, it will be sold to a private management company or charter school.

“Don’t put children over profit. It’s starting to turn into a business. Our kids are not for sale,” said Carol Kazeem, a Chester Upland parent and rally organizer.

Read more about Chester’s fight for educational equity at the Daily Times.