In Our View, Feb. 5: Prioritize Education

Indeed, the state of Washington certainly is not living up to its constitutionally mandated duty: fully fund basic public education for all children. And what happened in King County Superior Court on Thursday was not exactly earth-shaking news. In fact, a similar judicial declaration was made 32 years ago.

Still, a coalition of 70-plus school districts (including Vancouver Public Schools), organizations and other groups can rejoice in the ruling because it forces legislators to focus on what the state constitution insists is the state’s “paramount duty.”

Superior Court Judge John Erlick ruled that “basic education is not being funded by a stable and dependable source” of funds. He also urged the Legislature to determine how much it costs to provide basic education for a child and find a reliable way to pay for it.

Now it’s up to the politicians to prioritize public education and meet the constitutional mandate without raising taxes.

Erlick’s most powerful words came in the form of a prophecy: “Society will ultimately pay for these students. The state will pay for their education now or society will pay for them later through unemployment, welfare or incarceration.” The coalition that brought the lawsuit against the state — the Network for Excellence in Washington Schools — would do well to focus on Erlick’s prophecy. It pairs conveniently with a 2008 declaration from John Erickson, who at the time was superintendent of Vancouver district schools and has since retired: “Not only has the state not provided the funding necessary, but it has heaped increased responsibilities and obligations (on schools) without commensurate funding.” Also known as mission creep, it deftly tip-toes onto campuses from myriad sources, from well-intentioned lawmakers, from the federal No Child Left Behind Act and from standardized testing policies.

We welcome this intensified spotlight on public schools, but we also know that Thursday’s ruling will have little immediate impact, and possibly not for many years. The ruling could be appealed, and there’s no new timetable for following the mandate. The Legislature is trying to do its part, already committing to reform public education funding, but not until 2018. NEWS leaders say that’s way too late, and they’re right.

Some legislators will sigh exasperatedly and point to the challenge of resolving a $2.6 billion budget deficit. Sighing, though, won’t amend the state constitution. And making excuses won’t eliminate the fact that schools statewide are scaling back programs, laying off teachers, crowding more students into classrooms and raising user fees.

Finally, we hope that teachers unions will use Erlick’s ruling not to augment their own pursuit of higher pay and more benefits, but for the purpose that was intended by the judge, to strengthen schools. Improving schools requires a shared sacrifice. According to a Seattle Times story on Thursday, per-pupil funding of public education in our state by some measures ranks 42nd in the nation. Our kids deserve better, and it’s up to legislators to, first, decide how much it costs and, second, stabilize the funding source.

We don’t like the idea of public educators suing the state, but we understood why they felt they had to do it. We hope this second emphasis on public schools will prove more effective than the similar ruling in 1978. All that led to was a blizzard of studies and reports, and the survival of the status quo.