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Philadelphia House Delegation praises expanded state Child and Dependent Care Enhancement Tax Credit

Kenyatta applauds Tech Freire Charter School for winning school safety grant

(Mar 02, 2020)

PHILADELPHIA, March 2 – State Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta today congratulated Tech Freire Charter School, which resides in his 181st Legislative District , for winning a $7,000 state grant to measure its current physical safety and behavioral health programs to determine if adjustments should be made. He also lauded a safety grant awarded in the same round to Temple University. “Children are among our must vulnerable citizens and it is our civic and moral duty to provide safe spaces for them in school and beyond,” Kenyatta said. “I congratulate the educators and administrators of Tech Freire for recognizing the need to assess the physical and mental safety of their students and for making a strong case for the state dollars that will help in the effort. I am committed to making sure all possible state funding that is meant to ensure the presence of behavioral health counseling services, security equipment and safety plans in schools is sent to the people I serve.” Kenyatta is a sponsor of legislation that would require the Department of Education to investigate and report on the number of mental health professionals in schools in order to make recommendations on how to increase the number of school mental health professionals to meet nationally accepted ratios. The bill (H.B. 1622), known as Philip’s Law, is named in honor of a an 11-year-old student from his legislative district who died by suicide after struggling to seek and get Read more

 

Kenyatta Winter 2020 Newsletter

(Feb 26, 2020)

My Winter 2020 is now available! Read more

 

Kenyatta co-hosts bipartisan public hearing on combatting mental health issues among youth

(Feb 13, 2020)

WASHINGTON CROSSING, Feb. 13 – Today, longtime mental health advocate state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta, D-Phila., co-hosted a public hearing with Rep. Wendi Thomas, R- Bucks, at the Washington Crossing United Methodist Church to discuss solutions for youth struggling with mental health. “I am thrilled to have been a part of this discussion that transcends partisanship because as public servants, we are all obligated to ensure our residents are physically, emotionally and mentally well,” Kenyatta said. “Mental health has always been a pressing and a coincidingly stigmatized issue in our society; I have been a longtime advocate for breaking those stigmas and promoting comprehensive solutions to ensure the well-being of our children.” Thomas concurred with her Democratic House colleague’s praises of the bipartisan cohesion and pointed out that mental health also doesn’t discriminate. “Mental health is an issue that does not discriminate. It affects all ages, races, genders and classes. Chances are that each of us knows an individual who has struggled with mental health issues, and we all hope that those close to us would be able to get the necessary assistance in times of desperation. Unfortunately, as many as 60% of students do not receive the treatment they need due to stigma and lack of access to services,” said Thomas, adding, “It is so encouraging to see, not only so many legislators attend our Read more

 

Philadelphia Delegation lauds Wolf’s 2020-21 state budget proposal

(Feb 04, 2020)

HARRISBURG, Feb. 4 – The House Democratic Philadelphia Delegation today lauded Gov. Tom Wolf’s 2020-21 budget proposal for including many of the priorities they identified as important to improving the quality of life for Philadelphians and for people across Pennsylvania, according to Delegation Chairman Rep. Jason Dawkins, D-Phila. Wolf outlined his proposal before a joint session of the General Assembly this morning. Led by Dawkins, members of the Philadelphia Delegation met with the governor earlier in the year to stress their budget priorities, including state funding to rid Philadelphia schools of toxins and fix crumbling infrastructure; funding to reduce waiting lists and provide more support for seniors, people living in poverty and those with disabilities; raising the minimum wage to a living wage; creating good jobs with an education plan to provide the skills to fill them; and addressing poverty and gun violence as a public health crisis. “The Philadelphia Delegation is grateful for Governor Wolf’s vision for the state in this, his sixth budget plan,” Dawkins said. “His proposals are people-focused and seek to provide more opportunities for everyone, not just the privileged few. We will be a loud voice in making sure they are included this year.” Dawkins said the governor’s budget proposal includes $1.1 billion to ensure students, teachers and staff can learn and work in classrooms that aren’t Read more