GRASSROOTS COALITION SUES CALIFORNIA OVER SCHOOL FUNDING
GRASSROOTS COALITION SUES CALIFORNIA OVER SCHOOL FUNDING
Says State Violating Fundamental Right to Education by Shortchanging Students
Oakland—A coalition of grassroots groups and individuals representing thousands of low-income students and parents from across California is suing the State of California over a school funding system that the Governor’s own Committee on Education Excellence said is “not equitable;…not efficient; and…not sufficient for students who face the greatest challenges.”
The lawsuit calls on the State to live up to its constitutional responsibility and “provide all California public school students with a new school finance system that sufficiently and equitably supports its public schools, so that every child has a reasonable opportunity to obtain a meaningful education that prepares them for civic, social, and economic success in the 21st century.”
Plaintiffs in the case include the Campaign for Quality Education (CQE), Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE), Californians for Justice (CFJ) and San Francisco Organizing Project (SFOP), plus more than 20 individual students and parents. They are represented by Public Advocates Inc., a San Francisco-based public interest law firm and advocacy group that also served as a lead counsel in Williams v. California and Serrano v. Priest, as well as Howard Rice, and Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP, two prominent national law firms serving as pro bono counsel.
“Since California was founded, our constitution has recognized public education as the State’s highest and most necessary duty. We’re filing this suit to force the State to live up to its founding promise to invest in our most valuable asset—the human potential of Californians,” said John Affeldt, managing attorney at Public Advocates. “With funding for education at historic lows, we’re bleeding away tremendous reserves of student potential and with it the future prosperity and well-being of the state.”
To read the complete press release and for more information on the historic CQE et. al v. California, go to www.fairschoolsnow.org
May 11: CQE Grades California's Schools (Recap)
(May 11, 2010)
Sacramento, CA--Approaching the 56th anniversary of Brown v. Board, students and parents of color gathered in the State Capitol to grade California's public school system from 2000 - 2010. In six "subjects," the state earned a dismal overall 0.66 GPA. The categories included Funding, Graduation Rates, and College and Career Readiness.
The students and parents came as part of the Campaign for Quality Education's day of action titled "M.I.A.: California Ditching Schools from 2000 - 2010."
The morning portion of the program featured student and parent speakers from groups across the state, ranging from OC Human Relations in Orange County to Inner City Struggle in East Los Angeles, and Californians for Justice in Fresno to the Bay Area's PLAN. The keynote speaker was Assemblymember Julia Brownley (D-Santa Monica) who chairs the Assembly Education Committee. To read the full press release, click here.
To see the CQE's Report Card on California public education from 2000 - 2010, click here. To see a Historical Timeline of attacks on California's schools from 2000 - 2010, click here.
M.I.A.: California Ditching Schools from 2000 - 2010 (May 11, 2010 Action)
California Ditches Students of Color
Students and Parent Groups Give Report Card on California Schools From 2000 – 2010
WHAT: On the west steps of the California Capitol Building. students, parents, and allies will mount their defense of a public school system that has been under attack for the last decade. Instead of receiving grades, the Campaign for Quality Education will instead grade California’s schools from 2000 – 2010. Based on data, personal experience, and community surveys, the CQE will be grading California’s schools in the following categories: Funding, Graduation Rates, College and Career Readiness, Teacher Quality, Facilities/Materials, and Accountability.
With the May California budget revise underway, students and parents from across California—Long Beach, Los Angeles, Orange County, the Central Valley, San Jose, San Francisco, and Oakland—will also speak out against the $17 billion cuts to education over the last two years, back legislation that supports accountability and revenue creation, and make delegation visits with their local legislators. With immigrant students, low-income students, and students of color a majority of California’s schools, the CQE will stress that their needs are California’s needs.
This event is timed to coincide with Brown v. Board. Fifty-six years after the landmark Supreme Court case was supposed to desegregate schools, California graduates less than 60% of its black and brown students from high school.
WHEN: Tuesday, May 11, 2010 10:30am Speakout
1:00pm Legislative Visits
WHERE: State Capitol Building (West Steps), Capitol Avenue, L Street, Sacramento, CA 95814
WHY: “We are beyond cuts to the education budget,” said Melia Franklin, Executive Director of Parent Leadership Action Network (PLAN). “This is an amputation and California’s future will pay for this ‘Lost Generation’ for years to come. We come as parents and students of color, the people most affected by this Crisis in Priorities, to defend education and include our voice in solving this crisis."
For more information or to join us, please call Paul Tran, Communications Director at Californians for Justice, at (562) 951-1015 or email him at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
CQE in OC Register
CQE Featured in Orange County Register Editorial: "A Lesson in Power from Teacher's Union"
For full text, click here
Schwarzenegger Vetoes Assembly Bill 8
(Oct. 14, 2009)
Education advocates today decried Governor Schwarzenegger's decision to veto Assembly Education Committee Chair Julia Brownley's bill Assembly Bill 8 (AB 8), pointing to it as yet another example of refusal by the Governor to move forward on a long overdue overhaul of California's archaic and highly dysfunctional school funding system.
For the complete press release, click here
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