This page provides an overview to issues AAUW Pennsylvania is currently attending to.
K- 12 Public Education Funding Lawsuit
Every child in Pennsylvania has the right to a public education that prepares them for college and career. But our legislative leaders in Harrisburg have created a school funding system where the students who need the most get the least, because of where they live. It’s wrong. It’s unconstitutional. And now, school districts and parents have taken the state to court.
The law suit was filed in 2014. The in-person trial in Commonwealth Court started on November 12, 2021 and ended March 10, 2022 after fourteen weeks of opening arguments, witness testimony, thousands of pages of exhibits, and closing arguments. Then briefs were written and submitted to the court presenting legal rationale. July 26 was the last day of the trial –Judge Renée Cohn Jubelirer heard post-trial oral arguments and now must render her decision.
Learn about the issues and William Penn School District et al. v. Pennsylvania Department of Education et al lawsuit at Fund Our Schools or, for a more “legal” perspective, go to the attorneys site, Public Law Center.
AAUW Pennsylvania public policy priorities support a quality system of public education and advocates for (one of four points) fail and adequately funded system of public education. Many AAUW Pennsylvania branches and members have attended rallies, wrote postcards, studied the issues, and followed this historic trial.
Petitioners (the school districts and parents) and Respondents (Legislators and Executive branch) returned to court on July 26, 2022 for the post-trial oral arguments. During the post-trial oral arguments, we heard a day-long clash of opinions as to what kind of education students in Pennsylvania public schools have a right to receive under the Pennsylvania State Constitution. An absolute must-read, is In Court, a Clash of Views on What Education System PA’s Constitution Requires.
What kind of education do students in Pennsylvania public schools have a right to receive under the Pennsylvania State Constitution? Attorneys from both sides addressed this pivotal question during oral arguments. Petitioners attorneys from the Public Interest Law Center believe they will prove, as they did at trial, that the Pennsylvania State Constitution demands high quality public education in every community, so that all students have the support they need to prepare for careers, further education, and civic participation. Our current two-tiered school funding system, divided by local wealth, fails to meet that standard.
Stay current and sign up for update at https://www.fundourschoolspa.org/.
Additional sources for information on this issue and trial are:
PA Schools Work
Public Interest Law Center
Education Voters PA
Level Up PA