AFT on Kansas Supreme Court Ruling that School Funding Falls Short—Again

WASHINGTON—Statement by American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten on Kansas Supreme Court ruling that Kansas still has unconstitutionally inadequate school funding:

“Today is a good day for Kansas. Sadly, it's taken the courts—after years of students suffering from austerity budgets—for Kansas public schoolchildren to get justice and opportunity. Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback seems determined to stick it to children and give public schools as little as he can get away with. The state Supreme Court has become a guardian for Kansas' schoolchildren, refusing to let the governor and Legislature maintain a school funding system that falls short of a constitutional level. This is a clear victory for children and their families who understand that public education is essential for their kids to succeed.

“Lawmakers can talk the talk about the importance of education, but it’s all lip service if they don’t walk the walk and provide all children with a high-quality, well-funded public education. A policy of starving our public services, including schools, harms our democracy, our kids and our nation’s future.”