Law & Courts

N.C. Cites Progress in Satisfying Equity Lawsuit

By Kathleen Kennedy Manzo — April 14, 2004 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Members of the North Carolina state board of education say they are already on track in complying with a judge’s finding that more money and other resources must be provided to help low-wealth districts offer a high-quality education to all students.

Wake County Superior Court Judge Howard E. Manning Jr. sent a letter to board Chairman Howard N. Lee and state schools chief Michael E. Ward on March 27 in response to a state report outlining the progress North Carolina has made in meeting the court’s demands in the 10-year-old school finance case. The judge’s directive was a departure from his previous ruling, which did not call for additional funding.

Two days later, the state board concluded that its recent request for some $22 million in the state’s supplemental budget would help poorer districts hire and provide professional development for well-qualified teachers, as the court ordered.

“We firmly believe we are heading in the right direction and that we must continue to aggressively build on the strategies we have already implemented,” Mr. Lee said, according to a summary of the board’s closed-session discussion of the issue.

Given the state’s tight budget, however, it is unclear whether the legislature will approve the request when it convenes in May, Mr. Lee said.

The lawsuit, which was brought by five of the state’s poorest rural districts in 1994, charged that North Carolina was not providing adequate educational resources for disadvantaged children. One plaintiff, Hoke County, was selected as the representative district to present the case at trial.

Appeal Pending

In April 2002, Judge Manning directed the state to provide prekindergarten classes for 4- year-olds considered at risk of academic failure and to do more to ensure that all students had competent teachers and administrators.

In its most recent report to the court, the state said it was addressing the judge’s demands through a plan to help low-wealth districts reduce teacher turnover, offer content-area professional development, and attract high-caliber teachers to schools that have the most difficulty doing so.

The judge’s response to the report included for the first time a suggestion that additional funding for the districts would be required to meet the court’s demands.

The previous ruling, in fact, concluded that the education budget was adequate and that money should be diverted from other programs, such as extracurricular activities and programs for gifted students. (“Do More for Needy Students, N.C. Court Orders,” April 10, 2002.)

Some observers praised the judge’s most recent determination.

“I’m very encouraged by this, because, for the first time in a decade, there has been recognition that it will take additional resources to make some of the changes the judge says need to be made,” said John Dornan, the executive director of the Public School Forum of North Carolina.

Meanwhile, state leaders are awaiting a decision on their appeal of Judge Manning’s April 2002 ruling.

While state officials argued that they had instituted a preschool program and were in the process of making the other required changes, they questioned whether such services are required under the state constitution.

The appeal also questions the use of test results as the measure for determining whether a student has received the requisite education.

Related Tags:

Events

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
Assessment Webinar
Reflections on Evidence-Based Grading Practices: What We Learned for Next Year
Get real insights on evidence-based grading from K-12 leaders.
Content provided by Otus
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
Student Well-Being Webinar
Creating Resilient Schools with a Trauma-Responsive MTSS
Join us to learn how school leaders are building a trauma-responsive MTSS to support students & improve school outcomes.
School & District Management Live Online Discussion A Seat at the Table: We Can’t Engage Students If They Aren’t Here: Strategies to Address the Absenteeism Conundrum
Absenteeism rates are growing fast. Join Peter DeWitt and experts to learn how to re-engage students & families.

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

Law & Courts Trump Asks Supreme Court for OK to Move Ahead With Deep Teacher-Training Cuts
The Trump administration on Wednesday asked the Supreme Court to allow it to cut hundreds of millions of dollars for teacher training.
2 min read
President Donald Trump, left, holds up a signed executive order as young people hold up copies of the executive order they signed at an education event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Thursday, March 20, 2025.
President Donald Trump, left, holds up a signed executive order as young people hold up copies of the executive order they signed at an education event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, Thursday, March 20, 2025. The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court to permit the cut of funding for teacher training programs.
Ben Curtis/AP
Law & Courts See All the Lawsuits Filed Over Trump's Education Policies
Here’s a look at the moves that have drawn litigation, and where the complaints stand.
3 min read
Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference held at Trump Tower, Friday, Sept., 6, 2024 in New York.
Donald Trump speaks during a news conference held at Trump Tower on Sept. 6, 2024 in New York. His education actions since returning to the White House in January 2025 have drawn numerous lawsuits alleging he's overstepping his authority.
Stefan Jeremiah/AP
Law & Courts Opinion Can States Bar Religious Charter Schools? The Supreme Court Will Soon Decide
Recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions suggest that bans on faith-based charter schools may violate the Free Exercise Clause.
13 min read
The United States Capitol building as a bookcase filled with red, white, and blue policy books in a Washington DC landscape.
Luca D'Urbino for Education Week
Law & Courts NEA, AFT Sue to Block Trump’s Education Department Dismantling
The nation’s two largest teachers’ unions are asking federal courts to halt efforts to close the U.S. Department of Education.
4 min read
Kim Anderson, the executive director of the National Education Association (NEA), speaks during a demonstration at the headquarters of the Department of Education, Friday, March 14, 2025, in Washington.
Kim Anderson, the executive director of the National Education Association, speaks during a demonstration at the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Education on March 14, 2025, in Washington. The NEA and the American Federation of Teachers have both filed lawsuits seeking to block President Donald Trump's efforts to dismantle the Education Department.
Mark Schiefelbein/AP