After an extensive analysis of 33 high-needs schools in New York, the Campaign for Educational Equity, based at Teachers College, Columbia University, released two reports this month that reveal New York is failing to provide all students a constitutionally mandated adequate education. Executive Director of the Campaign, Michael Rebell, says that “on a pervasive, statewide basis, kids are not getting what the constitution says that they’re entitled to.”
In 2003, Campaign for Fiscal Equity (CFE) v. State of New York, New York’s highest court held that the state’s constitution requires it provide all students the opportunity for a “sound basic education” that would prepare them for civic participation and competitive employment. Despite the CFE ruling, schools have seen their budgets shrink as lawmakers respond to the current economic climate.
The authors of the report conclude that:
"Since the 'state' is constitutionally responsible for this tragic situation, the governor, the legislature, and the Regents need to respond promptly and aggressively to meet the students’ critical educational needs…The state authorities have respected their constitutional obligation to balance the state budget, but, at the same time, they have grossly neglected their equally obligatory constitutional duty to ensure that all students are provided the opportunity for a sound basic education."
The report recommends specific actions that the Regents, the governor and the legislature need to take to come into constitutional compliance. The Campaign held two major conferences this month, one in Albany and one in Manhattan, during which participants discussed the findings as well as strategies for promoting constitutional compliance.
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