School funding: Should Georgia parents sue the state?
Here’s an op-ed running today on the AJC education page. This provocative piece is by Luis A. Velez, the parent of two children in the Coweta public schools. (Repeating again my request for op-ed submissions for the weekly education page. If you want to submit one, send it to me at mdowney@ajc.com. Op-eds must run with bylines. )
Enjoy this piece:
By Luis A. Velez
A political firestorm regarding public education in Florida may soon hit Georgia.
What do you do if you’re a public school parent who is fed up with the inferior quality of education your children are receiving? How do you deal with budget cuts that are crippling the system and even forcing teachers to beg for essential supplies, like crayons and pencils? If you’re a public school parent in Florida, you sue the state.
The Florida Supreme Court recently made history by holding that the Florida legislature can be held accountable for the quality of the state’s public schools. Specifically, the Court held that citizen-plaintiffs had stated a claim worth pursuing at trial, namely, that the Florida legislature is violating its “paramount duty” to provide and fund a “high quality” system of free public schools, as required by Article IX, Section 1 of Florida’s Constitution.
The Florida lawsuit promises to be instructive to Georgians on several fronts. First, Florida’s “paramount duty” to provide a “high quality” public education for its children sets one of the highest standards for state support of public schools in the nation. Most states only guarantee an “efficient” system of public education. In comparison, Georgia’s Constitution requires the provision of an “adequate” education. The suit might help clarify the differences in each standard.
The lawsuit also calls into question the crucial issue of whether public school education represents a fundamental right, like Free Speech. If not, what is the state’s legal duty to educate its children? The answers to these questions are of great interest to many disaffected Georgian parents of public school students who wonder what kind of education their children are being “guaranteed,” and are prepared to challenge the “adequacy” of the education their children are being provided.
These issues were previously litigated. In the 1973 case of San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez, the U.S. Supreme Court held that education is not a fundamental right and the Equal Protection Clause does not require absolute equality in school funding or prohibit “rational” disparities in educational funding. Thus, it refused to overturn Texas’ educational funding system that provided public schools with a “foundation” level of state funding, and enabled districts to augment state public school funding using revenues from local property taxes. This created funding disparities between wealthy and poor school districts.
It may be time for the Court to revisit these issues. Part of what is driving the Florida suit is that the state’s share of education funding has dropped from nearly 62 percent to about 44 percent, as lawmakers have shifted the responsibility for funding public schools to local communities through property taxes. This has made it virtually impossible for poor school districts to provide a “high quality” education. Even wealthy school districts are balking at their ever increasing funding burden.
What does all of this mean to Georgians? Before the parents of Georgia’s public school students rush to file comparable suits, they should understand a few things. First, Georgia’s Constitution only calls for the state to provide an “adequate” education, which is a much easier standard for the state to meet than in Florida. Also, in Georgia, state funds still account for over 60 percent of public education expenses, much higher than in Florida.
Nonetheless, the overall quality of public education in Georgia remains poor and its high school graduation rate is dismally low. Also, despite the Supreme Court’s ruling in Rodriguez that education is not a fundamental right, the Court has consistently stated that education is, “perhaps the most important function of state and local government…and the very foundation of good citizenship.” One wonders how can an uneducated populace properly exercise fundamental rights, such as First Amendment freedoms or the right to vote? Doesn’t this place the right to an education on the same footing as these other fundamental rights? They seem inexorably linked.
Given the anti-government furor that is sweeping the nation, this may be enough for Georgian parents to have a Howard Beale moment, in which they throw open their windows and shout, “I’m as mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this anymore!” To borrow a metaphor from Sarah Palin, perhaps it’s time for Georgia’s Mama (and Papa) Bulldogs, Panthers, and other public school parents to test the legal waters again to ensure our children receive an adequate public education. Some argue our kids deserve at least that much.
– From Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
91 comments Add your comment
catlady
December 27th, 2010
2:08 pm
ST–If you have a student who has been in-country for 5 months, speaks/reads little English, reads no Spanish, has parents who don’t read at all, yet comes within points of “passing” the CRCT in reading, you know it is a subminimal test. I asked her how she did it, and she told me by matching the words in the question with the words in the selection. (At this point, even kids who had not been here for a year were required to take it, unlike now when they get a year’s “pass” from all but the math and science sections (which are…ALL READING)
Dr NO
December 27th, 2010
3:12 pm
I love teaching. I hate what it is becoming.
December 27th, 2010
1:01 pm
You dont need to be worried about it. You should be doing your job that I AM PAYing you to do. Now GET TO WORK.
Lee
December 27th, 2010
3:30 pm
Folks, the wheels are fixin’ to fall off the bus, literally and figuratively. Bottom line, the States are running out of money and the Feds have printed and borrowed (from China, et al) all the money they can muster without crashing the economy for good.
A good video here: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7166293n&tag=related;photovideo
With regards to schools, it is not that we haven’t funded schools adequately, the government has screwed the spending side of the equation. Consider:
1. School systems can build new schools at a cost of tens of MILLIONS of dollars, but can’t afford to buy basic supplies such as copier paper. My favorite snafu is when my county builds a new school and then shuts the old one down. Tens of millions of dollars for a net increase of about 10 classrooms – and then in about five years, they’re adding trailers.
2. We pay PE teachers with Phd’s $90k + salaries, but can’t pay enough to attract people into critical fields such as math and science.
3. Go here http://www.open.georgia.gov/sta/viewMain.aud;jsessionid=189A6514EE08E584076CE9AC80A959C1 and review the number of people making six figure salaries at your local school district. Look at the millions spent on ESOL teachers (thanks in a large part to the Feds ignoring the ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION problem).
The list could go on and on, but until the government gets a handle on spending, I think most taxpayers are developing an “enough is enough” attitude to ALL government expenditures.
EdDawg
December 27th, 2010
4:45 pm
@ Lee educate yourself on ESOL issues … do everyone a favor & do your research before preaching your fear & hate towards children who are involuntary immigrants. Please google Lau vs. Nicholas & Plyler vs. Doe. You clearly have no clue on federal guidelines.
Schools are NOT the place for immigration enforcement. Schools should be a safe place for all students. If you feel that illegal immigration is causing such a strain on schools, then perhaps you should e-mail your representatives. Of course I’m like many White Middle Class Males, you complain about immigration & minorities; however, you enjoy your cheap chicken, your cleaning lady, your yardman, and the construction on your home etc. by the lower classes that in live in the metro area, regardless of immigration status.
Mift
December 27th, 2010
5:15 pm
Good grief Lee- So we don’t pay educators for higher degrees? A higher degree is the ONLY way a teacher can advance in pay. We should always honor the work of teachers and compensate them for their education, experience, and hard work. Lee-have you ever been a teacher? You know it does not stop when the bell rings and the kids go home. My wife is a classroom teacher and her typical day begins at school at 7:15am and she make makes it home between 5:30-6:00pm (we live 5 minutes from her work). She then spends most of the late evening hours (after getting our kids to bed) getting stuff ready for the next day, grading papers, etc. Lee- you might be one to say “well the get summers off”- this is a bunch on %^&$ for most teachers who work much of their summer in meetings, professional learning classes, working in their classroom.
Do we have a responsibility to the people (besides parents and clergy) who provide the foundation to our democratic society? Our republic has a free and public education for a reason. Our schools and their teachers exist to allow the possibility that even the child from the most humble of circumstances can have chance at moving up in society to become wealthier, professionally satisfied then his/her parents? Let’s put this in perspective. It is not about whether Lee can hold onto a couple more dollars each pay check to pay for his latte at Starbucks but it is about providing a highly qualifies and effective teacher and adequate supplies to all students in GA. These Tea Party (like Lee) have some things right but they are wrong to thing that government does not have a fundamental obligation to fund education.
ScienceTeacher671
December 27th, 2010
5:36 pm
Lee, most of the ESOL students in our district are military dependents.
RBN
December 27th, 2010
5:53 pm
The 60% figure is obviously pre-Sonny’s “austerity” cuts. Please make sure current figures are used when an op ed is printed. See Joe Matin’s quality work on underfunding of our schools. Clearly Gov.-elect Deal has already announced his intent to cut more this year. Even worse the funding problem is structural in Georgia nad even when the economy recovers there is no way to generate enough funding to meet current Georgia law(QBE formulas).
Adequate? Perhaps funding 180 days of instruction would be a start.
d
December 27th, 2010
6:02 pm
@RBN – and don’t forget proper planning time for the teachers too.
I may be teaching the same course for the 3rd year straight, but that doesn’t mean I want to do it just like I did last year.
Frankly, I’m tired of being reminded how much time I “have off.” If it were paid vacation, that would be one thing. But, no, I’ve already signed up for a workshop in Cincinnati this summer to help improve my ability to deliver curriculum to my students. I believe half of my workday back will be tied up in professional development rather than actually preparing for the start of term – and that’s assuming I get EOCT scores back before we go back so I can post grades before January 3. Frankly, if I were an hourly employee, all of this would be ILLEGAL.
Springdale Park Elementary Parent
December 27th, 2010
6:57 pm
Maureen, it isn’t “anti-government” sentiment. What you saw in the last election was a reaction to a particularly pious type of governance where elected leaders who aren’t as smart and talented as they think they are feel they know best what citizens need– and try to force-feed it to us. You don’t have to be a Palinite or follower of a certain party (I’m neither) to reject that type of governance.
teacher&mom
December 27th, 2010
7:08 pm
@Mift….High Five!
SmartDawg
December 27th, 2010
9:00 pm
I am always amazed by the number of grammatical and syntactical errors in the posts on this blog. It appears that many of those who comment have a long history of showing disrespect for teachers that began when they slept during English class!
Tony
December 27th, 2010
9:37 pm
Let me add a few more details about Florida’s school funding issues:
Over 20 years ago, Florida voters approved a lottery to help fund education. It was assumed that the revenue would supplement the state and local funds already in place. However, it did not take long for the state legislator to supplant the budget for education.
Then, Florida mandated class size reductions through constitutional amendments. This was by popular vote and became part of the state’s constitution. At the same time the voters approved an even larger homestead exemption – $50,000. It had previously been $25,000.
In addition, the state mandated that local governments cut budgets.
The anti-tax spirit is running high in Florida and their schools and children are paying the price. Since Florida is highly populated with retirees, it is understandable that these citizens have feelings against taxes. The point they miss is that without properly educating the students, there will be no tax base to continue their Social Security and Medicare payments. There will also be no one available to come when they push the button on their necklace and yell, “I’ve fallen, and I can’t get up!”
Lastly, to all of you who say it doesn’t take more money to improve education and get better results, you need to revisit economics. The law of decreasing returns comes to mind.
Spark ghetto
December 27th, 2010
11:28 pm
@EdDawg-
Why am I obliged to pay for the free education of someone who broke our laws to get here? I say get rid of this asinine law and you will see these illegals stop coming here and the ones here will leave. What would happen if I took my kids to Mexico and tried to enroll my kids in their public schools?
Former Middle School Teacher
December 28th, 2010
12:00 am
There won’t be much left to public education in this state after Deal’s 8 years (assuming he doesn’t wind up in jail) and that is exactly what many in the Republican party want.
EdDawg
December 28th, 2010
12:45 am
@ Spark Ghetto … We meet again to disagree. Did you google & read about Plyler vs. Doe or Lau vs. Nicholas? Really?! BTW, those are court cases. Yet another White male threatened by children who are involuntary immigrants – brought here by their parents. I’m sure you read your Bible. Honor your mother and father. A two year old can surely refuse coming to America with his/her parents. What an illogical, backwards & “Ghetto” argument you have presented us.
Why don’t you do some research and see if your children could enroll in Mexican schools?
Furthermore, I don’t know why I’m obliged to pay for the free education of students who are citizens who refuse to learn, to study, do their work, behave, and have parents who think they know everything about education just because they went to kindergarten. Why do I have to educate those legal citizens who let their butt hang out of their jeans? Do they deserve a free education- they can’t even dress themselves? Perhaps we should get rid of all the asinine in society. Why should I pay for their education, either? Really?! – Ghetto, I hope that you and other readers realize the use of sarcasm to prove the irrational comments made by those who naturally assume that all bilingual-Spanish people are illegals from Mexico.
GA Citizen
December 28th, 2010
7:52 am
An AP story out today at yahoo.com states that US corporations are reporting good profits and ARE hiring — but overseas. This is in part due to the fact that the quality of the global workforce now outpaces that of domestic workers. Their educational levels are higher. According to a Columbia University Dean, Jeffrey Sachs, “We are not fulfilling the educational needs of our young people. In a globalized world, there are serious consequences to that”. So, US companies are thriving again and hiring, but overseas — leaving 10%+ unemployment in the US. And our new governor is getting ready to further cut education spending in Georgia.
Your future is pretty bleak, folks.
teacher&mom
December 28th, 2010
9:09 am
@GA Citizen….I’m sure the outsourcing has EVERYTHING to do with education levels and NOTHING to do with cheaper labor and nonexistent benefit packages. For goodness sakes, we have corporations who think nothing of exploiting children in overseas sweatshops!
Do you really believe they can’t find enough educated Americans to hire? That’s just more corporate b*llsh#t.
Chris Sanchez
December 28th, 2010
9:39 am
Funding, funding, funding…always about how there isn’t enough money. The reason there isn’t enough money is that the public doesn’t believe having more money sucked from their wallets will improve the schools to begin with. We the public see a wasteful, bloated government bureaucracy that fights with such ferocity against being held accountable for the performance of students that it is laughable. Only in a government-run institution is accountability considered a bad thing.
In the business world people are held accountable for performance. Poor performance leads to the unemployment line and in this economy there are plenty of people waiting for an opportunity to demonstrate they can do better.
Chris Sanchez
December 28th, 2010
9:45 am
@GA Citizen: corporations are hiring overseas because it is less expensive to do so even with the shipping expenses to bring their goods back to the US. With corporate tax rates the highest in the world, the US is not exactly friendly for businesses to manufacture here. There is also the expense of employee benefits such as retirement and healthcare to contend with. The government in our country continues to pile more and more on our businesses. There is little wonder they have been altering the cost structures to their own benefit.
If we want to change this trend then we need to begin with the tax code. BTW…businesses don’t pay taxes! They are merely a pass-through from their customers to the government! Their pricing models take taxation into consideration when they bring a product to market.
ScienceTeacher671
December 28th, 2010
10:33 am
Chris Sanchez, about that accountability. I have students who are absent 10% or more of the time. I have students who NEVER bring a pencil or other supplies to class. I have students who refuse to do homework or study. I have students who play video games or chat online with friends all night, then sleep all day, and I’m not allowed to punish them as long as they aren’t disrupting others.
When these students fail, who do you think should be held accountable, and what form do you think this accountability should take?
TW
December 28th, 2010
11:09 am
It’ll never happen here. An educated electorate would mean the end of the GOP.
GA is one of the few states bold enough to openly keep it’s citizens stupid, thus empowering the rightwing snake-oil salesman.
baaa….baaa…
Cobb Teacher 2
December 28th, 2010
11:27 am
TW: It’s funny that you mention an educated electorate would mean the end of the GOP. I would argue the exact opposite. The Democratic party cannot face the fact that there are haves, and have-nots. In their mind, everyone should be a have, and those who already have should give their undeserved earnings to the have-nots. In other words, democrats like to make excuses for why people are in their current state and steal.
There is enough blame to go around when it comes to public education. At the top of the list would be the new fangled self-esteem movement and the belief that all learning should be fun. As long as kids are happy and enjoying themselves, we call that a great education. Parents are happy because their children are happy. After all, parents exist to make their children happy, right? Wrong.
Learning is hard work. I would like to think that you can learn to read and do math by playing games and singing songs, but that’s not all there is to it. While these creative methods certainly have their place, not every lesson needs to be mind-blowing with fun and excitement. Every lesson does, however, need to move the student forward in their understanding of the material. There are a lot of ways to do this, but I have found that manipulatives and all of this “new math” has created more confusion than understanding.
Much of what adults have to do in life is not fun. Paying the bills, cleaning the house, maintaining the cars, and doing laundry isn’t particularly fun for most of us. They are chores that must be done in order to keep the household running. So these children are going to be very surprised when they reach adulthood and find that not every waking moment of their lives are entertaining.
If we want to be taken more seriously as educators, we need to be more serious about teaching, and convey that to our students. Practice makes perfect, and we don’t have nearly enough practice going on in today’s classroom.
TopSchool
December 28th, 2010
1:35 pm
Is this another made up story to keep everyone’s head spinning.
TopSchool
December 28th, 2010
1:35 pm
As taxpayers…wouldn’t we be suing ourselves?
HemiShemi
December 28th, 2010
1:49 pm
Just maybe if we focused on teaching one language, enforce immigration, the money will appear.
I do not know how much is spent, but printing two of everything throughout the state, must be a huge expense. Not to mention the time lost during class, communication problems with parents. Wake-up people this is affecting our children. Stop and think, what has changed the most in the last 10 years or so. Take a look at the numbers. Where my kids go to school they are the “minority”.
HemiShemi
December 28th, 2010
2:11 pm
@EdDawg, the bottom line is a law has been broken! The American dream has rules. I live by them and you live by them.
I love teaching. I hate what it is becoming.
December 28th, 2010
5:31 pm
Dr. NO,
QUOTE: “You dont need to be worried about it. You should be doing your job that I AM PAYing you to do. Now GET TO WORK.”
I am on my winter break.
You aren’t paying me a penny.
So I am happy to inform you, gratis, that “dont” (sic) requires an apostrophe.
I have already spent a full 17 hours of off the clock (unpaid) time at my school (in the cold as the heating is turned down to save energy and money), in order to have report cards prepared the day we return. The last day of the quarter was the Friday before break, and report cards need to be ready the day the students return. How one manages that without working over vacation is certainly a trick. I will likely go in at least one more time to deal with other duties before I officially return to work. This does not include the time I have put in at home grading and responding to essays, and preparing for my Class Keys evaluation.
So, kindly get a clue.
Lee
December 28th, 2010
5:32 pm
@EdDawg: “do everyone a favor & do your research before preaching your fear & hate towards children who are involuntary immigrants.”
Oh good grief, it is not “fear & hate” to speak out against the tens of millions of alien invaders who have ignored our laws and our borders and who cost the American taxpayer BILLION$ each year. Case in point, in 2010, the state of Georgia paid $110,000,000.00 just to provide ESOL teachers, a significant percentage of which is a direct result of ILLEGAL immigration.
When states finally reach the breaking point [e.g. Arizona], they are attacked by our own Federal government.
@Mift: I understand WHY teachers go for the advanced degrees. As a taxpayer, I question if it is the most effective method to pay for degrees that often have no bearing on the education process [PE teachers with Phd's, really??].
Toto: speakin' the truth to power
December 28th, 2010
5:55 pm
The easy solution: pack up and return to the North from whence you came. After all, it is the land of superior education AND PEOPLE WHO KNOW HOW TO DRIVE IN SNOW…LOL!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kt_r-jO3lKE
Warning: may contain salty language.
TopSchool
December 28th, 2010
6:45 pm
@ I love teaching. I hate what it is becoming. …honestly this is a blog…
Can you use those talents in something productive?
We are all here to voice our opinion…not here to show our snooty talents.
This is a blog…
Get a life! State your case…make some sense of it…and move on.
We dont need your nasty knose in the air while yur trin to get yur point accrossed the table of discussion.
We all gots the message loud and clear.
TopSchool
December 28th, 2010
6:47 pm
@ i love teaching…hate what it is becoming…are you a lesbian?…cause it sure does sound lik it.
TopSchool
December 28th, 2010
6:48 pm
I’m gay so …I get your point.
EdDawg
December 28th, 2010
8:05 pm
@ Lee … in your utopian world, how will schools become immigration enforcement? Could you please explain how schools will know who is illegal & who isn’t illegal? Using language like, “tens of millions of alien invaders” sounds like ignorant, White Male fear & hate to me. The language you use sounds like the USA is being attacked from outer space. Please show us where you get your facts like, “case in point, in 2010, the state of Georgia paid $110,000,000.00 just to provide ESOL teachers, a significant percentage of which is a direct result of ILLEGAL immigration.” Provide support for your numbers & references – it is a GPS standard.
@ HemiShemi and others, their PARENTS FORCED THEM TO BREAK THE LAW – in the sprit of the court decision of Plyler vs. Doe ALL children in the US will not be penalized for the sins of their parents. ALL children deserve an opportunity for an education, if they are in this country regardless of race, sex, sexual -orientation, religion, socio-economic level and/or immigration status. Real educators teach, hold high expectations, and respect their students regardless of the aforementioned differences.
EdDawg
December 28th, 2010
8:08 pm
Oh BTW HemiShemi GA doesn’t provide bilingual education, so you don’t have to worry about things being printed in two languages, or 3 … 4 … etc.
EdDawg
December 28th, 2010
8:15 pm
… let me further educate you HemiShemi … due to NCLB requirements parent communications are printed in English and the other dominate languages of the district. Texts for educating students are not. Of course you’re probably not a teacher, so you like many others don’t know anything about federal regulations. Also, if you don’t like the demographics maybe you and your family should move to a state that isn’t a majority/minority like say, South Dakota. Again, if you and others who can’t handle Whites not being the majority, are welcome to take your racists selves and move to another state.
I love teaching. I hate what it is becoming.
December 29th, 2010
9:55 am
Top School,
For shame. You take me to task for admonishing someone who is basically a bully, then you ask if I am a lesbian? Odd that. I was actually respecting a lot of what you had to say prior to this. You are correct in that I should not get nasty while engaing in a “discussion”. However, what Dr. NO is doing hardly falls within the realm of “discussion.” I do not see that anything he/she has said has anything to do with the topic at hand. If someone insults me by suggesting those who work in my profession are all so stupid they can’t even flip burgers, I am going to call them on it.
Fred
December 29th, 2010
6:35 pm
Dr NO
December 27th, 2010
12:18 pm
I agree with Fred in that most teachers are very very stupid, should be fired and keep there mouths shut. Just a group of enabling excuse makers and molly coddlers.
===================================================
I never said all that Dr. No. I made reference to ONE teacher, not some, many, much less “most.”
I think MOST teachers do a bang up job. Their hands are tied. The system is failing THEM, they aren’t failing the system.
Most respectfully Dr. No, I would like to state for the record that in your “statement” I don’t agree with YOU.
Fred
December 29th, 2010
6:40 pm
I love teaching. I hate what it is becoming.
December 27th, 2010
1:01 pm
Fred could use a few lessons on use of capitals, how to offset a transitional word with a comma, and how to avoid beginning a sentence with a conjunction.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Bite me. I type with two fat fingers, poor vision and don’t edit. When I write for articles, I PAY people to edit my typo’s. Don’t confuse typo’s with ignorance.
A little tip, you will never win a war trying to be the grammar police. It’s almost inevitable that you yourself will make a typo. You may have in your post, I don’t know because I didn’t check.
But then again, if you think I said what Dr. No implied I said, then perhaps I should include YOU in the lack of reading comprehension group with Cobb Teacher……..
Toto: speakin' the truth to power
December 29th, 2010
11:35 pm
The real problem with Georgia schools is that they are not bad enough! The big mistake Bev Hall made was raising the scores instead of lowering them….
Just look at the goodies T.C. Williams High in Washington D.C. received by being labeled
“persistently lowest achieving”–the grand prize was $6 MILLION from Obama! And if that weren’t enough, the principal responsible for this largess gets the boot so a NEW hire can lead the way.
But wait, that’s not all! More counselors so each student can have a detailed achievement plan. There is a new math and writing center where students drop in for tutoring. All this, while the school WAS ALREADY SENDING 85%OF ITS GRADUATES TO COLLEGE. An amazing feat for a failing school! So what is their dirty little secret? Only 1 in 3 Hispanics and 1in 5 “African Americans fail to graduate ON TIME. DID YOU READ THAT? These problem students ACTUALLY graduate! Where is the justice for Georgia? I’M SURE HUNDREDS OF SCHOOLS HERE UNDERPERFORM T.C.WILLIAMS HIGH! Where is our $6 million? If this isn’t blatant discrimination against Southerners, I don’t know what is.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/12/26/AR2010122602410.html
I love teaching. I hate what it is becoming.
December 30th, 2010
12:53 pm
Fred,
You are correct. I was frustrated with Dr. NO’s continual haranguing, and you got caught in the cross-fire. I owe you an apology.
However, I would prefer not to “bite” you, as that would likely be unpleasant for both of us.
Public school
January 1st, 2011
5:10 pm
Adequate would be pursued to mean average by state lawers. Anything offered that is above average in your childs school would be considered above and beyond by Georgia Constitution and pretty much a priviledge provided by your local BOE. Gifted, Advanced Placement, Foriegn Lang., Art, Music, All elective classes, Speech, Spec. Ed.Services, etc. would all fall under the above and beyond catagory