Fighting For Children

On Tuesday, I met with representatives from Pennsylvania's Child Advocacy Centers to discuss my efforts in the Senate to protect children from violent and sexual predators in the classroom.

The potential danger of sexual and violent predators in our children's classrooms is real, and it's a serious problem that I am determined to tackle. That is why, with Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), I introduced bipartisan legislation -- Protecting Students from Sexual and Violent Predators Act. This commonsense bill would require background checks on all school employees who have unsupervised access to children. Our bill also would ban "passing the trash" - the terrible practice of a school helping a child predator obtain a new job in another school.

As a father of three young children, I cannot imagine the pain and suffering of a parent whose child is sexually assaulted. No family should have to endure such a tragedy. I look forward to coming together with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to protect our kids.

On Monday, I also will be holding a Senate Budget Committee Field Hearing regarding legislation to direct more funds towards victims of child abuse, domestic violence, and other crimes. You can learn more about this upcoming event here.

During a Wednesday morning ceremony, I had the privilege of officiating and administering the oath for the promotion of Commander Bradley D. Dunham, United States Navy, to the rank of Captain.

A native of Bethlehem, Pa. and a graduate of the United States Naval Academy, Captain Dunham represents a long history of honorable and courageous military leaders from our great state. As a naval aviator, he has accumulated over 5,000 hours of flight time and has flown numerous combat sorties in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, Afghanistan and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Captain Dunham is exactly the type of leader our military needs.

Recently, I visited the borough of Yeadon in Delaware County. I toured the community with Mayor Rohan Hepkins and other city officials. There is no substitute for walking around a neighborhood to better understand the people and the communities of our state.

I was particularly interested to learn about the after-school programs offered at the Yeadon Free Library attended by about 50 students each week. The economic outlook of the community is encouraging. I enjoyed my visit with employees at Visions Restaurant where I heard a good bit about improved safety in the neighborhood. Yeadon is doing great things to deter crime -such as installing security cameras in the busiest parts of the town.

I appreciate Mayor Hepkins hosting me and I look forward ro continuing to work together to improve the lives of Pennsylvanians. You can read more about my visit to Yeadon here.

On Thursday morning, I had the opportunity to meet some exceptional young scientists. Lela Miller, Lola Hewitt, and Emma Braun from Waldron Mercy Academy in Merion Station, Pa. were selected from over 5,000 teams nationwide as the winners of the 2015 Toshiba National Science Teachers Association ExploraVision Award.

These girls won for their project called S.T.A.R. technology that helps protect the nests of sea turtles and provides a guide for turtle hatchlings to reach the ocean safely. It is fantastic to see young Pennsylvania students interested in science and competing on a national level.

I expect big things from Lela, Lola, and Emma! You can learn more about this award here.

This week, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter stopped by my office to discuss a range of issues. Mayor Nutter and I have a good working relationship and I look forward to continuing our work together on behalf of the people we serve.