Schoolmageddon ’13: Nutter Asks for Donations to School District

NBC 10 reports that Mayor Nutter is asking the public to donate school supplies to local schools:

Called the Philadelphia Education Supplies Fund, Mayor Nutter implored citizens, nonprofits and corporations to donate money to the program that will buy school supplies for all K-12 schools in the city — even charter and parochial.

“We all have a role to play in supporting the next generation of Philadelphia’s leaders,” Mayor Nutter said standing with the city’s educational leaders.

The city hopes to raise $500,000 by October 15. To kickstart the late funding push, the city dropped $200,000 into the initiative, according to Mayor Nutter.

You know, a lot of people will donate to this because they’re our schools and need our support, and hey, that makes a lot of sense.

But you know what also makes sense: Screw this. Public schools are not supposed to be a charity. It’s one thing for a class to do a bake sale so everybody can go on a field trip. When the schools can no longer furnish pens, paper, and other basic educational items, that means the system has failed. It’s good to try to keep things running with duct tape and bailing wire, I guess, but turning a basic mission of government into a philathropic opportunity means that government has surrendered. Will we be donating bullets to the police department next?