Education A State Capitals Roundup

Mass. Funding Case Goes to High Court

October 12, 2004 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Lawyers representing 19 Massachusetts school districts began oral arguments last week before the state’s highest court, contending that the state has failed to give students in poorly financed schools an adequate education, as required by the state constitution.

The lawyers for the Boston-based Council for Fair School Finance essentially asked a seven-judge panel to uphold the recommendations of a superior-court ruling last April, which found that the school aid system has contributed to overcrowded classrooms and an uneven implementation of the state curriculum. (“Mass. School Funding Comes Up Short, Judge Rules,” May 5, 2004.

On the first day of oral arguments, Oct. 4, some judges on the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court expressed doubt that simply providing more money would help districts. They cited management issues and a lack of teacher training as contributing to problems. The court is expected to rule early next year.

State Commissioner of Education David P. Driscoll noted in an interview that 80 percent of Massachusetts’ students are passing state accountability exams, and that state sat scores have increased for more than a decade. “Progress is being made,” he said. “We’re getting results.”

Related Tags:

Events

Ed-Tech Policy Webinar Artificial Intelligence in Practice: Building a Roadmap for AI Use in Schools
AI in education: game-changer or classroom chaos? Join our webinar & learn how to navigate this evolving tech responsibly.
Education Webinar Developing and Executing Impactful Research Campaigns to Fuel Your Ed Marketing Strategy 
Develop impactful research campaigns to fuel your marketing. Join the EdWeek Research Center for a webinar with actionable take-aways for companies who sell to K-12 districts.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Privacy & Security Webinar
Navigating Cybersecurity: Securing District Documents and Data
Learn how K-12 districts are addressing the challenges of maintaining a secure tech environment, managing documents and data, automating critical processes, and doing it all with limited resources.
Content provided by Softdocs

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Briefly Stated: March 13, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 21, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: February 7, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
8 min read
Education Briefly Stated: January 31, 2024
Here's a look at some recent Education Week articles you may have missed.
9 min read