Underwood’s latest Under the Law column examines equitable and adequate education
Communities have an interest in ensuring children receive an adequate education. But how do we define community? In this column, Underwood explores the meaning of community when it comes to ensuring education.
Underwood is the Susan Engeleiter Professor of Education Law, Policy and Practice, and the former dean of the School of Education.
Writes Underwood: “At the heart of any discussion about school funding are questions of public values, public responsibility, and membership in a community. Whose responsibility is it to maintain and fund public schools? How broadly is access provided? Is the entire state responsible for directing the education of all its children, or do we leave this responsibility to each community? Do we compare levels of equity and access within a town, a county, a state, the nation? The resolution of these questions is, in large part, dependent on whether an individual has a legal right to an education and at what community level (i.e., local, state, or federal) that right is confirmed.”
Underwood concludes by writing: “As a community, our future depends on the education of upcoming generations. The quality and accessibility of education predicts our individual and collective paths in terms of democracy, equity, financial security, and growth. And yet, access to quality education in our nation varies significantly from community to community and state to state.
“Public education has been seen as the fodder for the mill of democracy. Today’s polarized political environment makes clear the need for an educated citizenry, an informed electorate that can sift through political claims and conflicting media reports to understand and participate in public discussion and decision making. As such, the Cook v. Raimondo case makes an incredibly important legal and value-based argument, and we will have to see how courts respond to these arguments as this case works its way up the legal ladder.”
To learn more about this important but nuanced topic, check our Underwood’s entire column on this Kappanonline.org web page.