Aliquippa superintendent reacts after PA school funding ruled unconstitutional
Parents and school districts are reacting after a Pennsylvania judge declared the state’s system of funding public schools is unconstitutional and violates the rights of students.
Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 visited Aliquippa School District in Beaver County.
The district relied on state funding, and superintendent Phillip Woods says the judge’s ruling is a big win.
“I was actually very excited because, in the past, we have had these same arguments in regards to schools with lower income. Schools that face challenges in the community are being asked to meet the same state standards as the higher-performance schools when we have to allocate a bunch of our budget to mental health supports, social supports, and it’s almost impossible to do that when you don’t have the proper resources or supports,” Woods said.
On Tuesday, the judge who made the ruling said the state has not fulfilled its obligations to the poorest public schools under the state constitution, depriving them of the same opportunities and resources as students who reside in school districts with high property values and incomes.
“We fall below the average when it comes to our test scores and the Keystone exams and the math and the language arts and the science, so we have tried to put energy and attention to overcoming that deficit with rewriting curriculum, putting in new courses. The challenge of keeping tenure staff on board has definitely been a challenge,” Woods said.
Parents agreed and said Tuesday’s ruling was a promising sign.
“We could always use more funding. These kids always need things, new school supplies, books, all of that, so yeah, it's a positive thing,” Kaila Johnson said.
Woods said his district consists of 1,053 students, and in Aliquippa, the average household is below the poverty line.
“I think this money will help us with the continuum of supports that we have put in place in regards to again purchasing new curriculum, hiring behavioral specialists, and social, emotional supports … we have an after-school program where we do tutoring, and then we feed the students, so those funds are vital in those capacities and our school is kind of the hub of the community, so if the kid is going to be here, we want them to be here in a productive way,” Woods said.
The judge's decision did not direct the legislature on how much state aid to distribute or how to distribute it, saying that the court is in uncharted territory with this landmark case.
She’s leaving it up to the governor, lawmakers and school districts that sued to come up with a plan. Woods says he hopes action is taken sooner rather than later.
“We need this support immediately because all schools right now are formulating their budget for the upcoming school year, so to understand and know that we have this money coming helps us rest assure that one, we are going to be able to sustain jobs, we will be able to sustain programs, we will be able to continue to employ the outside resources or the people that we have contracts with, and give students the best educational experience possible,” Dr. Woods said.
Governor Josh Shapiro responded to the ruling and released this statement:
"Creating real opportunity for our children begins in our schools, and I believe every child in Pennsylvania should have access to a high-quality education and safe learning environment, regardless of their zip code. My Administration is in the process of thoroughly reviewing the Commonwealth Court's opinion and we are determining next steps."
