Breaking: U S Commission on Civil Rights Issues Report on Inequities in Public School Funding #school funding

The United States Commission on Civil Rights has issued a new report concerning the inequities in public school funding. The conclusion of the report is that America's schools are profoundly unequal. 

Here are the recommendations of the Commission:

Recommendations: 

 We agree with the Equity and Excellence Commission that the federal government must take bold action to address inequitable funding in our nation’s public schools. 

 Congress should: 

 incentivize states to adopt equitable public school finance systems that provide meaningful educational opportunity, promote student achievement for all students, and close achievement gaps where they exist; 

 incentivize states to ensure adequate funding for students with disabilities, without incentivizing classifying students into special education 

 incentivize states to invest in facilities which can help to provide an equitable environment for students to achieve. 

 increase federal funding to supplement state funding with a goal to provide meaningful educational opportunity on an equitable basis to all students in the nation’s public schools; 

 promote the collection, monitoring, and evaluation of school spending data to determine how funds are most effectively spent to promote positive student outcomes; 

 develop mechanisms to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of federal spending on enhancing student achievement and closing achievement gaps; and 

 Since the Supreme Court’s decision in San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez, a quality education has become even more mandatory for students to gain the skills necessary to work in the new global information age economy and it has become clear that some states and cities are continuing to discriminate against students of color in the funding of their schools. Congress should make clear that there is a federal right to a public education. 

 Federal, state, and local government should develop incentives to promote communities that are not racially segregated and do not have concentrated poverty, which in turn would positively impact segregation and concentrated poverty in public schools and the educational challenges associated with such schools. 

You can read the entire 158 page report here.