Last week, a group of North Carolina public education advocates, parents, and leaders came together to urge lawmakers to take action on the decades-old Leandro case.
The Leandro vs. The State of North Carolina case remains a crucial educational policy and leaves billions on the table in public education funding. In 1997, a group of parents, students, and state districts in five under-resourced, rural counties filed a lawsuit against the state and the Department of Education, stating that they had not yet fulfilled their constitutional responsibility for providing all students a sound, basic education.
The case now sits in front of the state’s highest court, the North Carolina Supreme Court, which has refused to issue a ruling on the case for the last two years. Leandro has not been seen in the courts since 2022, and with its anniversary coming up in a few weeks, education advocates have a lot to say about both the state’s Republican-led General Assembly and conservative-leaning high courts’ refusal to fund public education.
“Every day our students and staff do their best in overcrowded classrooms, buildings that are falling apart, and conditions that drive adults to leave the professions that they love in droves as we have sunk to 43rd in the country in teacher pay and 50th in overall funding,” said Bryan Proffitt, Vice President of the North Carolina Association of Educators.
“Do your job,” Proffitt said. “Honor the Constitution. Rule to mandate the funding of Leandro. Stop the delays and put our kids first. History will remember whether this court stood with children or our state’s wealthiest residents and corporations.”
The stakes are high as a ruling for Leandro could mean that public schools get about $1.7 billion in funding for multiple initiatives, including per-pupil spending and infrastructure. A state budget has not been passed by the Republican-led NC General Assembly, adding insult to injury.
“Children across North Carolina are paying the price for political games and chronic underfunding,” says Democratic State Representative Rodney Pierce.
It’s time for North Carolina’s Supreme Court and the NC General Assembly to stop using students and teachers as pawns for their political games and fully fund our public schools.
