The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People is the latest entity to file a lawsuit against the US Department of Education over its guidance that local education agencies must use federal coronavirus aid to provide “equitable services to students and teachers in non-public schools.”
The lawsuit contends that Congress intended the CARES Act, which the president signed into law March 27, to apportion coronavirus relief funds based on the number of low-income students at both public and private schools in each district, “in the same manner” as Title I funds.
In contrast, an Education Department rule stated that the funds ought to be distributed based on the total number of students in both public and private schools, resulting in fewer dollars for public schools, the lawsuit contends.
The Education Department amended the rule in late June, following concerns that Catholic and other non-public schools were being excluded from sufficient epidemic relief funds to support protective equipment for students and teachers, cleaning, training in remote education, and distance education tools.
Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has defended the rule by stating it recognizes that CARES Act programs are not Title I programs.
“There is no reasonable explanation for debating the use of federal funding to serve both public and private K-12 students when federal funding, including CARES Act funding, flows to both public and private higher education institutions,” she said….
The Pasadena Unified School District in California, Stamford Public Schools in Connecticut, and Denver Public Schools in Colorado have all joined the lawsuit.
Some 5.7 million children, about 10% of school-age students, attend private schools, the Council for American Private Education, has said. About 8% of private school students are living in poor households, compared to about 19% of public school students.
The above comes from a July 23 story on Catholic News Agency.
This lawsuit is ironic given that black students perform better and have much more positive outcomes when they are educated in Catholic schools. Such shortsightedness, it leaves one to wonder if this just another example of opposing President Trump at all costs. I suspect so, and this time, school children will pay the price.
The US nees to settle this debate over funding of private education. I know in Ontario, Canada and i believe in Europe private schools, as long as they are accredited, get public funding at the same per capita rate as public schools.
Yes, i am aware of First Ammendment points in this area.
This is ironic and sad. One of my daughters-in-law teaches at a mostly black inner-city Catholic school and the students and parents love the opportunity to get a better education.
Pretty soon anyone in a major metropolitan area in California is going to wish that this was the worst of their problems. Want to know what’s coming your way? Look at Seattle, Portland, Minneapolis, Chicago. Those riots are coming to California. That’s what Democrat governance and leftist education gets you. When that happens, having this funding dispute will seem like living in Disneyland.
The Obama years are bearing their bad fruit. That man did everything he could to prep and stoke a race war in America. Now he and Soros are getting what they wanted to try to bring down the country and the social order. Dems are despicable. A vote for them is a vote for anarchy and mayhem and evil.
It is part of the movement to give the state control over everything: opening of churches, worship, education, speech, assembly, money, etc. It gives the state power to form thought and control behavior. Jesus came for freedom and liberty as did our founders to America, even though true freedom was denied to some and had to be fought for to be gained at a later time. We need to fight for our freedoms and take nothing from the state that is not necessary.
Thank you Father Perozich. Spot on.
Every citizen of the United States needs to know this. People in several states have received unsolicited packages from China containing seeds, often thinking there is jewelry enclosed. If you get one of the seed packages, which are in cellophane inside larger packaging, do not open them. It is against U.S. law to send such things to us through the mail, and the Chinese Communist government could be sending something that would help destroy our crops. I would add do not open such a thing even from any other country. Do not trash them either. Call the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture to find out what to do with them.
I would like to clarify this, they SEEM to be coming from China, but the government is looking into who is sending them and why. Anyway we should notify the agriculture authorities if we get such packages and not use them.
One of our southern states is now dealing with not only having alligators that are natural to its environment but also types of pythons brought in from another country. We have laws against taking certain species of plants and animals across borders for seriously good reasons, please abide by them, or you might regret it later.
Any private school in most states that takes money from the State or Federal government is making a mistake in judgment. You can’t take their money without taking their regulations with it. If you think public education is a terrible thing, elect different people to the legislature and local school boards, go to meetings and protest, march in the streets, stir up some good bad. But don’t take their money expecting a free handout.
Wrong again “Beto”! I have posted this link before (July 2nd ) for all you naysayers
washingtonpost.com/opinions/low-income-families-are-the-true-winners-of-the-supreme-courts-religious-schools-ruling/2020/06/30/ef176d9a-bb03-11ea-bdaf-a129f921026f_story.html“It is important to remember that the scholarship goes to the child, and that the child’s family then decides which school best meets the needs of individual students.”
“With federal money will come federal regulations.”
Not as long as I have the money, It”s called school choice! Viva Bishop Michael Barber!
Bob One public education is tragic joke….
I’m afraid that accepting funds for our Catholic schools from the government will be catastrophic in the long view. Once they have a foot in the door they will be dictating what books, ideas, etc will be taught. It happened to all the Indian school. It’s a Trojan horse. Beware!
Maybe the bishops need to teach the state a valuable lesson and close all schools for at least a year forcing the public system to absorb all of our students. Let’s see how well they do then.
Anonymous: the Left would love to close all Catholic schools. Failing, overcrowded schools and students are of no concern to them. It’s all about power and getting rid of God and nuclear families.