Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court Judge Renee Cohn Jubelirer made the right call in declaring the current system of school funding in the state unconstitutional.

The lawsuit was brought by six districts in the state including two in our area - Panther Valley in Carbon County and Shenandoah Valley in Schuylkill County. Aside from these half dozen, there are scores of other poorer districts that have been the victims of unequal funding, and their students have paid the price.

Although the decision is historic, let’s not pop the Champagne corks just yet, because there is sure to be an appeal, and this already long dragged out case going back nearly a decade will meander on even longer through the state appellate court system, maybe even wind up in front of the U.S. Supreme Court.

The judge’s ruling said that the current system of school funding fails pathetically short of the equality envisioned by the framers of our state constitution. As such, it violates students’ rights, a contention that these poorer districts have been making for years but falling on deaf ears.

All you need to do is look at the deficiencies and inequities in these districts compared to more affluent districts. The difference is so stark that it does not take a rocket scientist to come to the same conclusion that the judge did. Basic provisions that are taken for granted in most affluent districts are considered as nonexistent luxuries in some of our poorer districts.

“Students who reside in school districts with low property values and incomes are deprived of the same opportunities and resources as students who reside in school districts with high property values and incomes,” wrote Jubelirer, a Republican jurist, in her 786-page decision. As a result of this, she said, “students attending low-wealth districts are being deprived of equal protection of law.”

To my way of thinking, this is the crux of Jubelirer’s decision: The state must provide a “comprehensive, effective, and contemporary” system of public education and give all students a “meaningful opportunity to succeed academically, socially, and civically.”

An attorney for the plaintiffs, Dan Urevick-Ackelsberg, said this explosive ruling will reverberate positively for the state’s children for years to come. Look, it comes down to this in its simplest terms: If a child needs let’s say a reading specialist to meet state standards, that’s who will be provided. Some poorer districts don’t have librarians and have left other basic positions unfilled for economic reasons.

Assuming the court decision holds, it will then be up to the members of the General Assembly and Gov. Josh Shapiro to hammer out the mechanism for the proper funding to occur.

It’s ironic because it was former Gov. Tom Wolf, his Secretary of Education and leaders of the two houses of the General Assembly who were defending the current system of funding. Although none of these entities has decided whether to appeal, Shapiro, who when he was the state’s Attorney General, filed a friend of the court brief on behalf of the plaintiffs. Shapiro’s office said the governor is reviewing the court order to determine his next step.

In addition to the two local districts, also bringing suit were Wilkes-Barre Area School District, William Penn District (Delaware County), Greater Johnstown schools and City of Lancaster School District. Other plaintiffs are five parents, the Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools and the Pennsylvania NAACP.

To distressed school districts such as Panther Valley, the 9-year-long court battle (and counting) seems like an eternity. In 2018, the trial was expected to start in 2020, but then the COVID-19 pandemic struck, and its start was rolled back to 2022.

Among those testifying at the trial was Panther Valley Superintendent David McAndrew Jr., who reiterated some of the district’s deficiencies because of years of inadequate funding. He emphasized that it has taken a drastic toll on the district’s professional personnel, many of whom have left for greener pastures and a less-stressful situation.

Because of insufficient funding, these districts are unable to provide students with the basic elements of an adequate education, such as appropriate class sizes, sufficient experienced and effective teachers, up-to-date books and technology, adequate course offerings, sufficient administrative staff, academic tutoring, counseling, adequate health services and suitable facilities necessary to prepare students to meet state proficiency standards and their future challenges in an increasingly technological society.

Are we willing to continue to tolerate the intolerable in 21st Century America?

By Bruce Frassinelli | tneditor@tnonline.com