Joshua Young, a House Democratic candidate from Chester County, has taken a public stance on PASSHE secession, and he is asking his primary challenger, Josh Maxwell, to join him in asking Senator Andy Dinniman to withdraw support for Senate Bill 1275. Last month, Maxwell, the young Downingtown mayor, was endorsed by State Senator Dinniman, and days before the secession press conference, Maxwell was showing Dinniman some love on his social media pages. Since the secession press conference, Maxwell hasn’t spoken out against secession legislation.
Joshua Cain, who was a trustee member at Slippery Rock University, wrote in an oped:
As a former chairman of the Slippery Rock University Council of Trustees I find this bill to be another example of Harrisburg’s lack of commitment to our public education system and the start of another broken promise to Pennsylvanians. I strongly disagree with the senators and believe that allowing West Chester University to leave the State System, which is the purpose of this bill, would result in the beginning of the collapse of the entire system.
The state system, similar to the NFL and Major League Baseball, depends on major markets teams paying in to support the small market teams. The same happens with our state schools, big schools, like West Chester, help off set the costs at Clarion, Edinboro, Mansfield and Cheyney. This bill will put Mansfield, a small university in the northern tier, and Cheyney, the only Historically Black University in the State System, in real jeopardy.
Senators Tomlinson and Dinniman have proposed a problem not a solution for the state system. If the senators truly want to help strengthen the state system, there are many changes that could have huge impacts. One huge impact would be to remove the red tape and bureaucracy from building construction at the State System schools.
I call on my Democratic primary opponent, Josh Maxwell, to join with me in asking Senator Andy Dinniman, a prime sponsor of the legislation, to withdraw his support from Senate Bill 1275 and stand up for public education, stand up against exploding the cost of college and for keeping the educational treasures of Pennsylvania, our state school system, intact.
Now it’s time to see where the young Downingtown mayor stands on this issue. He can come out in support of strengthening Pennsylvania’s State System of Higher Education or he can stand with State Senator’s Andy Dinniman and Tommy Tomlinson.
