How would public cyber schools fare under the current funding?

Public cyber charter schools quickly reflected on the negative impact of the cuts.

“There are nearly 10,000 teachers, staff, and contracted providers across the Commonwealth working to serve approximately 65,000 students in public cyber charter schools,” said Debra Heath-Thornton, CEO of PA Virtual Charter School, in a written statement. “The 2025-2026 state budget will result in approximately 2,000 layoffs of cyber charter school teachers and staff due to significant funding cuts. I am devastated by the actions taken today by lawmakers in Harrisburg. We must work together to end the continued attacks on public education and on our most vulnerable children.”

Steinberg, on the other hand, was pleased with the reform for charter schools.

“It cost the school district of Philadelphia over a billion dollars out of their budget,” he said. “It is like a third of their budget. Just think of all the programs that we could fund if that money were in the traditional public schools where they belong.”

According to a press release, the budget builds on last year’s record education investments with more than $900 million in new funding for public schools. Since taking office, Shapiro has increased school funding by nearly $3 billion, marking one of the largest education commitments in state history.

The budget also includes $100 million for mental health and school safety. It boosts the Student Teacher Stipend Program by $10 million, raising total support to $30 million to help attract and retain educators. It also adds $5 million for public libraries and $433,000 for library services for the visually impaired, expands Grow PA scholarships, increases funding for special education and higher education grants, and invests $7.5 million to improve pre-K rates and strengthen the child care workforce. Universal free breakfast for all K-12 students and free lunch for 22,000 additional children will continue, serving nearly 93 million breakfasts served statewide during the 2024-25 school year.

Shapiro said the budget builds on “the progress we’ve made together to deliver better schools and more opportunity for our kids.”