January 2022
Witnesses in Funding Trial Have Highlighted Conditions in Underfunded Schools
The trial in Pennsylvania’s historic school funding lawsuit resumes on Thursday, Jan. 6; you can livestream it here. In the first 21 days of trial, witness testimony has provided a detailed, disturbing picture of the myriad ways that inadequate school funding harms students and schools in low-wealth communities. Students who should be getting the most support are getting the least.

From superintendents and school district staff, we have heard story after painful story about children in our petitioner districts going to deteriorating, poorly equipped schools with leaky roofs, inadequate space for instruction, insufficient bathrooms, and other unhealthy conditions like mold, asbestos, and inadequate ventilation.
A Dec. 14 rally in support of the lawsuit at the Capitol brought attention to troubling testimony,
including discussion of a school where 75 kindergartners must share one toilet.

We have heard about large classes with insufficient staff. The absence of reading specialists and other intensive academic supports. Difficulty hiring and keeping teachers and administrators. Worn, outdated textbooks. Deficient technology. Limited offerings in areas like art, music, athletics, and foreign languages. Insufficient services for English learners. Inadequate preschool offerings. Not enough counselors and social workers. Educators have said that the students experiencing all these shortcomings get the message that their education is not valued.

Budget cuts have been a regular occurrence, causing layoffs and further instability. Witnesses have connected these shortcomings to inadequate funding and shown that the gaps in funding between high-wealth and low-wealth school districts result in corresponding gaps in academic and postsecondary outcomes. Although Pennsylvania has academic standards that expect all students to be college- and career-ready after graduation, underfunding means the resources aren’t in place to allow all students to meet these standards. 

The trial is expected to last as long as 10 weeks. To keep you informed, we have been posting daily highlights each evening of the trial you can follow them (or catch up) at fundourschoolspa.org/news. For the latest, follow ELC on Twitter and Facebook, and use the hashtag #FundOurSchoolsPA.
Funding Lawsuit in the News!
One measure of public interest in the school funding trial is the steady media coverage it has been receiving. Outlets like WHYY/Keystone Crossroads, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and Chalkbeat have been providing regular reporting of the proceedings, many of which are picked up elsewhere. Local papers have provided in depth coverage about the testimony from districts like Greater Johnstown and Lancaster
The Tribune-Democrat in Johnstown is one of many papers across the state covering the funding trial.

There has also been reporting in national outlets including Forbes and
The 74. On Twitter, the case caught the attention of New York Times writer Nikole Hannah Jones and Catherine Lhamon, who heads the Office for Civil Rights in the U.S. Department of Education.

Multiple papers have published our op-eds and those of our partners in media markets as varied as Wilkes-Barre, Lancaster, Altoona, and Johnstown. We encourage you to submit a letter to the editor of your local paper about the trial as one way you can show your support for the lawsuit and share your perspective.
Key Special Education Issues
Unaddressed by Commission Report
Pennsylvania’s Special Education Funding Commission issued a disappointing report in December that recommends minor adjustments to the state’s special education funding formula and fails to address the critical issues of limited state support for special education services, increasing costs, or charter funding reform.
 
The report recommends changes to the weighting factors for each of the three existing funding tiers to better reflect actual costs for different levels of student need. It proposes using a three-year average population count to reduce year-to-year volatility. PDE would be asked to collect actual cost data for all Tier One students (89% of the total) to determine if it should be split in two services for some Tier One students are very low-cost. Legislation is required to adopt the recommendations, which includes requiring an updated report by November 2024. 
 
The commission did not address issues raised in a series of 3 annual reports published by ELC that found that over a decade, the costs of special education services in Pennsylvania rose by 18 times as much as state support for those services. Our advocacy for adequate special education funding continues.
ELC Advocacy Helps Block Censorship Bill
ELC has been a leading opponent of Pennsylvania House Bill 1332, which was approved by the legislature and then rightfully vetoed by Gov. Wolf in December. The bill, which would have required each school district to post every book title and all curriculum on the district’s website, was promoted as a transparency measure. But it is part of a nationwide attempt to intimidate teachers and districts, disrupt public education, and thwart efforts to incorporate diversity and a culturally appropriate curriculum into schools.
 
ELC opposed the bill in the legislature and urged the governor to veto the bill. We will continue to monitor legislative and school board attempts to undermine equity measures and inclusive curricula and to oppose any legislative attempts to prevent students from learning about racism and the impact of racial, sex, and gender inequality.  
Call to Action on Juvenile Justice:
‘Care, Not Control’
Youth organizer My Le of the Youth Art & Self-Empowerment Project spoke at the Dec. 14 press conference.

Ashli Giles-Perkins, ELC’s Independence Foundation public interest law fellow, participated in a Dec. 14 “Care, Not Control” press conference and rally at the Capitol in Harrisburg, urging lawmakers to take action on recommendations for juvenile justice reform issued in June by the Pennsylvania Juvenile Justice Task Force. 

Members of the Care, Not Control coalition, which aims to eliminate youth incarceration, gathered to call attention to the six months that have gone by since the task force issued its final recommendations, which have yet to be actualized in legislation. Participating organizations and youth met with members of the task force and other key legislators throughout the day.

Watch the press conference and review the coalition’s platform as well as ELC's education-centered recommendations to learn more about changes needed to overhaul the state’s juvenile justice system. 
ELC Advocacy Supports a
Student’s Right to Special Education
ELC successfully represented “Ruby,” a multilingual learner who was given an inappropriate special education evaluation by a western Pennsylvania school district and found ineligible for special education supports and services.

ELC demanded that the school district conduct a reevaluation using best practices for multilingual learners, noting that all multilingual learners must be evaluated in their preferred language that is most likely to yield accurate information. After an appropriate reevaluation was conducted, Ruby was found to be a student with a disability in need of special education services. A special education plan is now being developed to support her learning.
Join Our Team: We're Hiring!
ELC seeks attorneys for full-time positions in our Philadelphia and Pittsburgh offices as well as a development specialist. See our website for a full description of job opportunities at ELC.
What We're Reading...
In Pennsylvania, It’s Past Time to Focus on School Funding Gaps by Lydia Kulina-Washburn for Chalkbeat Philadelphia


The Curb-Cut Effect and Championing Equity by Cory Collins for Learning for Justice.


Happy New Year from the staff and board of the Education Law Center. Thank you for your generous support of our work!

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