Candidate for
State Representative; Pennsylvania State House of Representatives; District 41

Education is the foundation for good health, good jobs and a good economy

None of the key issues facing our community today stands alone. They all have price tags. They must all be seen in the light of fiscal responsibility and the need for a balanced budget. Just as you and I balance our home budgets or workplace budgets, we must do the same in working to meet the needs described here. We must set priorities.

In setting priorities, we should note that each of these key issues is tied to the others. So in devising remedies to these problems, we may realize economies of scale.

Education, Jobs, and Healthcare are all intricately connected. Education is the foundation for job readiness. Access to healthcare is fundamental to keeping children healthy and ready to learn, and keeping workers healthy and productive. There is a proven direct link between a person's level of education and their health, a person's education/job training and income, and income and health. It is all interconnected, but it begins with a strong educational foundation.

The general theme of my approach is to identify what will be most financially prudent. It typically goes to prevention, first and foremost. If we can invest early in an intervention, a strategy, an initiative that will prevent a serious and costly problem in the future, why wouldn't we do that? If the data or our experience supports the idea, why wouldn't we? I'm not suggesting acting on a whim. I insist on action grounded in research and known success. There's more truth than humor in the saying, "In God we trust; all others bring data".

As I describe my point of view on each of these key issues, you will observe the underlying theme of prevention. Prevention is an investment in the future: our future, our children's future, and that of our children's children. Some investments might take years to show visible results, but others, particularly related to job growth, will pay off in only a few short years. But the benefits will last for generations to come. I want to honor my parents advice: leave the world better than you received it.