Michael Sauers

March 18, 2025

The following is a message sent to Arron Chapin at PSEA from Michael Sauers

My first year of teaching was 1972-3. I’m now retired. Over the course of my life, I have had successful careers in education, business, and community organizing. Education is the key to everything if you can get one. Class size was/is crucial. We all know this but we are failing. Millions of students have been cheated.

PA had to be dragged into court for a lesson on constitutionality. Shapiro, who is running for President, and the state legislature concocted a multi-year plan that may or may not provide adequacy. With billions of dollars in surplus it is difficult to believe that more could not have been done.

Teaching is not attracting the best and brightest. The salaries are low and the working conditions are not attractive. By now, PSEA and NEA should have succeeded in getting both state and federal subsidies for teacher salaries and class size reduction. Of course local funding would still be necessary. If our schools were producing independent, critical thinking students Trump would never be in the White House.

We are educators but we are not educating. We have 177,000 members but we are as weak as water politically. We go along to get along. If the children of PA are as important as we say then we had better get a backbone.

Now, you may think I’m just a crotchety old fellow. That’s true. However, I have been fighting for justice my entire life and children have always been at the forefront. They have been/are getting short changed. Disregard the Governor and State Legislature. Do a full court press on the court ruling. Go public! Demand that the education of our children be the highest priority. It is more important than economic development, energy, housing, transportation, etc..

All things flow from education. The wealthy (1%) know this. Most of their kids are going to private schools with small class sizes.