Teachers Start Fundraiser After Class Trip Money Stolen, School Vandalized

By Justin Udo

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) — A Philadelphia charter school is burglarized and vandalized, and the thieves made off with money students had raised for a class trip.

Authorities say vandals broke into Eugenio Maria De Hostos Charter School in the Olney section of the city on Friday night.

“They ransacked teachers’ desks, they stole money that children had raised through selling candy, they stole a couple of computers, laptops, and food from the cafeteria,” said Steven Lancianoa, a music teacher at the charter school.

Lancianoa says the stolen money was for a 5th grade class trip to see a Broadway play.

“There’s anger and outrage of why would anyone do this to our school and to our children,” he said.

Lancianoa says they refuse to sit dwell on what happened. “We’re going to have to regroup, let’s get together and let’s move on.”

Part of that moving on process is a GoFundMe page the teachers created to help get the kids to that Broadway play.

If you’d like to donate, you can find their fundraising page here.