Now the Basic Education Funding Commission Must Finish Its Job |
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ELC joined with hundreds to rally at the state Capitol on Nov. 14 to urge the Basic Education Funding Commission
to propose an effective remedy to repair the state’s unconstitutional school funding system.
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Pennsylvania’s 15-member Basic Education Funding Commission concluded its 11th and final public hearing on Nov. 16, having heard testimony from a wide range of stakeholders and experts. The testimony overwhelmingly reinforced the evidence heard in the Commonwealth Court school funding trial about the effects of inadequate and inequitable funding on students and schools in low-wealth school districts.
Now the commission must finish its job – swiftly completing a report and a plan to rectify once and for all the issues identified by the court in its historic February ruling that the state’s funding system is discriminatory and unconstitutional. The commission report is due January 11, in time to inform Gov. Shapiro’s next state budget proposal due on Feb. 6.
ELC and our partners have emphasized that the report must include a determination of how much additional money each Pennsylvania district needs to provide a constitutionally compliant education – an adequacy target – and a multiyear plan and timeline for getting each district to that target.
In an analysis presented to the commission, Penn State professor Matthew Kelly calculated what those targets should be, based on spending in Pennsylvania’s successful school districts, and determined that public education spending must be increased in total by $6.2 billion, or about 20%. This does not count the additional costs of expanding preschool and repairing Pennsylvania’s school buildings, which must also be addressed. Kelly’s analysis is the only current and comprehensive assessment of the need.
Our view is that the state should prioritize creating a new, separate fund dedicated to moving every underfunded Pennsylvania district to its adequacy target over five years, while ensuring that all other education line items receive annual increases to keep pace with inflation. Together, we must persuade our governor and legislators to be on the right side of history and fully comply with the court decision.
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Hostile Environment Claims Brought
Against Pennridge School District
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Our civil rights complaint says that policies and practices of the
Pennridge School District have created a hostile environment.
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ELC attorneys, in partnership with co-counsel at University of Pennsylvania's Advocacy for Racial and Civil Justice Clinic (ARC), filed a civil rights complaint Nov. 15 to the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, challenging discriminatory policies and practices in the Pennridge School District in Bucks County. The complaint outlines how the district has failed to protect children of color and LGBTQ students from harassment and bullying, creating a hostile environment for years through both this inaction and harmful policies like book-banning and disbanding diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.
ELC and ARC worked closely with families and organizational plaintiffs ̶ the NAACP of Bucks County and the PairUP Society ̶ and with four students and a teacher to document the blatant race- and sex-based harassment. Even before a formal investigation is opened, several of the remedies sought can be enacted much sooner at the district level. ELC remains deeply thankful for the brave and resilient young people who shared their stories, and for their parents who demanded more inclusive and safe school environments. We encourage others to call our Helpline if facing similar circumstances in their districts.
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An Important Breakthrough on Residency Rights |
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ELC has represented many students who are disenrolled when their families are targeted for residency investigations by school districts. Students may be out of school for weeks or months as parents work to provide documentation or appeal decisions to the Pennsylvania Department of Education or in courts. As a recent Center for Public Integrity report pointed out, these investigations are often directed against students experiencing homelessness, can be intrusive, and vary widely in due process protections. Even short-term school disruption can be harmful to student well-being and academic success. These practices disproportionately harm Black and Latinx students, who are more likely to be targeted for residency challenges and truancy due to individual racial bias and systemic racism.
To address this problem, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives on Nov. 13 unanimously passed House Bill 663, an ELC priority, to reform residency investigations. Under the bill, school districts would be prohibited from disenrolling a student until all appeals are exhausted and would be required to inform families of their right to appeal a residency determination. Parents would also be entitled to receive information that would help to establish whether they have protections against residency disputes under the federal McKinney-Vento Act.
ELC thanks state Rep. Jeanne McNeill from the Lehigh Valley, who sponsored the legislation in response to the disenrollment of a student with disabilities in her district. The bill now goes to the Pennsylvania Senate.
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ELC Testifies Before Hearing on Needs
of Students Experiencing Homelessness
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ELC legal director Maura McInerney provided testimony as part of Pennsylvania’s Homeless Awareness Week to a joint informational hearing of the Pennsylvania House Children & Youth Committee and Education Committee on Nov. 15.
Maura’s testimony focused on three key legislative recommendations: 1) mandated use of a universal non-stigmatizing screen to improve identification of students experiencing homelessness; 2) targeted resources to students experiencing homelessness and additional protections in the school discipline context; and 3) enhanced support for unaccompanied youth experiencing homelessness, including increased collaboration between school districts and child welfare agencies to address the crisis of children in foster care aging out to homelessness.
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ELC Seeks Class Certification in Glen Mills Case |
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ELC, along with our co-counsel Juvenile Law Center and Dechert LLP, has just completed briefing of our motion seeking class certification in our lawsuit filed on behalf of hundreds of youth who were subjected to abuse and deprived of an adequate education at Glen Mills Schools, a former placement for youth adjudicated delinquent that was closed by the state in 2019. The named plaintiffs are seeking classwide treatment of several key issues pertaining to liability of defendants Glen Mills and the state Department of Human Services for failure to ensure the safety of former residents, and the Pennsylvania Department of Education for failure to ensure that students received a legally compliant education in accordance with their rights under education law, constitutional law, and federal disability rights laws.
In January, the window will close for former residents of Glen Mills
to apply for settlement funds under the $3 million settlement agreement with Chester County Intermediate Unit. We continue to spread the word about the fund.
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Addressing the Denial of Education Rights |
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Through its work, ELC often represents students who are system-involved. Staff attorney Ashli Giles-Perkins currently represents Z.P., a 19-year-old student with a disability placed in the Allegheny County Jail (ACJ). Since his arrival at ACJ in March 2023, Z.P. has never been enrolled in school, and his individualized education program (IEP) and most recent evaluation were not reviewed or revised in accordance with federal and state laws.
As a result of Ashli’s representation and advocacy, including a letter to the judge assigned to Z.P.’s case highlighting Z.P.’s unaddressed educational needs and the benefits of his returning to his community, the judge agreed to release Z.P.
Ashli continues to represent Z.P. as he transitions back into an appropriate educational setting. ELC is now working with partners to address the systemic issues raised by Z.P.’s experience.
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ELC Submits Comments to Advance Rights of Students with Disabilities in Child Welfare System |
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ELC’s comments focus on providing greater specificity in the proposed regulations to ensure that children and youth with disabilities in the child welfare system are afforded full and equal opportunities to remain in community and family-based settings and avoid harmful institutionalization. ELC proposed revisions including prohibitions on federal financial assistance to residential providers who require children and youth in congregate care settings to disenroll from a public school; fail to offer school stability; place children in a more restrictive setting without individualized consideration; or deny children a free, appropriate public education, including the right of youth to receive transition services.
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ELC Visits with the Steelers! |
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ELC participated in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2023 Social Justice Partner Fair Nov. 8-9 at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, joining other community organizations in talking with Steelers players and sharing information about our work on behalf of western Pennsylvania communities. We are grateful for the ongoing support of the Steelers’ Social Justice Fund to further our work ensuring that all children in Pennsylvania have access to a quality public education. (And yes, we love those Eagles too!)
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Strengthening ELC for 2024 |
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This holiday season, please consider giving to ELC to support and strengthen our work. From continuing to fight for fair funding in public schools to advocating for affirming classrooms, our efforts in the coming year will see an immediate impact from your generous gift.
When you make an unrestricted gift, it is particularly helpful to ELC because it can be used wherever there are emerging needs. For example, individual gifts have been vital to ELC’s ability to respond promptly to the surge of attacks on inclusive schools and honest education by extremists on school boards. Together, we strive to show every student they have a welcoming and supportive community behind them.
Thank you to everyone who supported our Nov. 28 Giving Tuesday fundraiser. It’s not too late to donate to support our work; please consider a tax-deductible gift today. We are deeply grateful!
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Job Opportunities in
Pittsburgh and Philadelphia
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See our website for a description of internship opportunities at ELC. |
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Education Law Center | 215-238-6970 (Philadelphia) | 412-258-2120 (Pittsburgh)
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A copy of the official registration and financial information of the Education Law Center may be obtained from the Department of State by calling toll-free, within Pennsylvania, 1-880-732-0999. Registration does not imply endorsement. |
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