Six school districts and parents of schoolchildren submitted a brief on Nov. 10 accusing Pennsylvania of violating its state constitution by skimping on education funding.

The lack of funding denies some of the state’s students their right to an adequate education, according to the plaintiffs, who include the Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools and the Pennsylvania NAACP.

According to the complainants, the state has not only provided too little funding to schools, but also distributes it inequitably, with schools in poorer communities receiving less funding per student than schools in wealthier areas.

“It turns the caliber of public education into an accident of geography,” the complaint charges. “Children in property- and income-poor districts are denied the opportunity to receive even an adequate education.”

Joseph Bruni, the superintendent of the William Penn School District, described the impact of inequitable funding. Located only a few miles from wealthier communities, Bruni’s district cannot afford full-time guidance counselors in elementary schools and has had to cut back on Advanced Placement classes.

It’s “an American tragedy,” he said. “We’re struggling to meet a bare minimum of services.”

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Nov. 10