Courts as Catalysts: State Supreme Courts and Public School Finance EquityDespite education being one of the most important, if not the most important, political issues for the American public, access to funding for education is not equal across school districts. Local public schools are generally funded by a combination of state aid and local property taxes, a combination which favors wealthier suburbs and disadvantages relatively poor urban and rural areas. Nationwide, low-income districts have gone to court attempting to remedy these inequities. But has litigation been worth the price from the activists perspective? Can poor districts (and poor parents and children) look to courts for help? Conversely, should rich districts fear court-ordered redistribution of wealth from their schools? This book examines the effectiveness of state supreme courts in Texas, Kentucky, and North Dakota in achieving funding equity between rich and poor public school districts. It includes more than ninety interviews with policymakers and observers and concludes that, although there are many factors that can help or hinder equity reform, courts can make a difference. |
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Contents
Courts and Social Reform | 1 |
Funding American Public Schools | 27 |
Texas We Want to Surrender We Just Dont Know Where To Turn Ourselves In | 59 |
Kentucky The Courts Made Us Do It | 111 |
North Dakota Well Give You One More Chance | 167 |
State Supreme Courts and the Different Paths to Public School Finance Equity Reform | 207 |
Cases Cited | 241 |
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Common terms and phrases
activists argued assessment backlash Bismarck Tribune claimed concerning constitutional Court decision court orders Court ruling Dallas Morning debates Edgewood education reform effect election executive branches federal fiscal neutrality goals Hollow Hope Houston Chronicle impact influence interest groups interviewees judge judicial Kentucky Kentucky Supreme Court KERA lawmakers lawsuit leaders litigation Louisville Courier-Journal majority North Dakota opinion plaintiff districts policymakers political branches poor districts poorest districts problems property tax public school finance redistribution Republican response role Rose Rosenberg Rugeley school districts school finance equity school finance issue school finance reform school finance system school funding system school reform school system Senate Bill separation of powers session significant social solution specific state's studies task force tax base tax increase tax rate Texas Texas Supreme Court threat tion tricts ture U.S. Supreme Court voided vote voters wanted Wilkinson
References to this book
Adequacy, Accountability, and the Future of Public Education Funding Dennis Patrick Leyden No preview available - 2005 |