Christian school leader is first witness for Republican lawmakers in Pa. school funding trial

As they defend Pennsylvania against a historic lawsuit challenging the state’s education funding system, Republican legislative leaders called as their first witness Wednesday the leader of a private Christian school who said his students were succeeding, even though many live in poverty and his school spends less than most public districts.

Aaron Anderson, the CEO and head of school at Logos Academy in York, testified before a Commonwealth Court judge in Harrisburg that the K-12 school of 225 students scores above the national average on certain standardized tests. By high school, there is next to no achievement gap between those who are poor and those who aren’t, Anderson said.

An ordained minister, Anderson credited the school’s high standards for staff and relationships developed with parents, as well as the school’s belief that children “are made in the image of God and have potential” to learn.

Upon cross-examination, he acknowledged that the school does not necessarily have the ability to serve students with disabilities or English learners, depending on their particular needs. And if students test significantly below grade level in the admissions process, “that may be a bigger hurdle than we can accommodate,” Anderson said.

His testimony came as lawmakers — Senate President Jake Corman and House Speaker Bryan Cutler — begin to present their case in the landmark trial, which began in November. The petitioners — six school districts, including Delaware County’s William Penn; several parents, and two statewide organizations — called 29 witnesses over the course of nine weeks as they argued that Pennsylvania’s method of funding public education is so inadequate and inequitable that it violates the state’s constitution.

» READ MORE: Four highlights from the landmark Pa. school funding trial, as plaintiffs rest their case this week

Corman and Cutler are expected to spend two to three weeks calling witnesses as they try to refute those claims — starting with Anderson, who portrayed his school as well-functioning and desired by families.

The private school is supported heavily by taxpayers: About 50-55% of Logos’ funding, Anderson said, comes from state programs that grant tax credits to businesses that donate to private school scholarships. Republican lawmakers have pushed to expand those programs and won increases, though Gov. Tom Wolf has rejected the full expansions they’ve sought — instead calling for better funding for public schools.

The programs — with a $280 million annual cost — don’t collect data on participating students’ household incomes or whether they switched from public schools, among other accountability measures, according to a recent report from Pennsylvania’s Independent Fiscal Office.

Scholarship organizations are permitted to keep 20% for overhead costs. Anderson said his school puts all the funding into scholarships, and could serve more students if the tax credit programs were expanded.

While a family of four can make up to $130,710 and qualify for a program scholarship, Anderson said 59% of students at Logos are at or below the federal poverty line. The school aims to enroll students “who have not had a fair shot at education in a failing school district,” he said.

Logos Academy spends about $13,000 per pupil, he said. In contrast, the York City School District, where Logos is located, spent $20,000 per pupil in 2019-20, according to state data.

While Anderson said his school was adequately educating students — almost all of whom go on to colleges or universities, he said — it lacked the money to do more. Educating students with more complex special needs, for instance, as public schools are required to do, would require more resources, he said.

The school doesn’t pay for transportation — a cost Pennsylvania school districts incur for private schools, provided the public schools provide transportation to their own students — or running sports teams.

“You wouldn’t venture to guess all the challenges a public school faces that Logos does not,” said Annie Marchitello, a lawyer with O’Melveny and Myers representing plaintiffs. Anderson said he would not.

He agreed with Marchitello’s questions that small class sizes, tutoring, and supports like reading specialists were important for learning — resources that district teachers and officials who testified for petitioners said they lacked — though he was “not sure I agree” with statements made by those officials that their public schools didn’t have sufficient funding.

Logos teachers make in the $40,000 range, Anderson said. Teachers don’t make “nearly what they should,” and the school competes with better-resourced schools for staff, he said. On cross-examination, he noted that some teachers are drawn to working in a Christian school, while some families may not want a religious focus.

Though most students attend the school with scholarships, Logos requires families to pay something, with minimum tuition usually around $1,000. Anderson acknowledged not all could afford that, and said the school provides some hardship exceptions.