The Panther Valley School District needs state lawmakers to finalize a state budget and provide the needed funding to continue operating, its school board president said Wednesday.

“The continued delay in passing a Pennsylvania state budget is having a significant and increasingly harmful impact on the Panther Valley School District,” Daniel Matika said, reading from a prepared statement.

“This uncertainty threatens our ability to provide essential educational services, maintain staffing levels and support student programs,” he said.

“We urge our state leaders to prioritize public education and finalize a budget that ensures our students and schools are not left behind,” Matika said.

The Panther Valley School District is among the poorest districts in the state and was involved in a fair funding lawsuit that resulted in the state providing adequacy funding to help the state’s underfunded districts.

After the meeting, Matika said the district absolutely needs lawmakers to pass a budget and start providing the subsidies the district relies upon.

“If we don’t get our state money soon, we’re going to run out of money as a school district,” he said plainly. “We need our local politicians to get it done.”

The board approved General Fund bills of $2,153,558.97 for the month.

Superintendent

In his report Wednesday, Superintendent Dave McAndrew wished the girls volleyball team good luck as they played Tri-Valley in the Schuylkill League Championship and thanked Dave Kistler for sponsoring a fan bus for students.

The team returned home to the Panther Valley as champions Thursday night, complete with the championship and a fire truck parade through the communities.

McAndrew also thanked the local fire companies for their support and coming to visit students for Fire Prevention Week earlier this month.

He congratulated and thanked school directors Renee DeMelfi and Anthony DeMarco who were recognized by the Pennsylvania School Boards Association for 10 and 15 years of service, respectively.

McAndrew also noted that they had a great turnout for the Trunk or Treat event at the intermediate school with close to 400 students in attendance.

“We just finished a teacher professional development day, where all teachers had the opportunity to learn CPR and Stop the Bleed training,” McAndrew said.

He also noted that the business office is preparing for the yearly financial audit, which take place at the end of the month.