GSE Events
Steven S. Goldberg & Jolley Bruce Christman Lecture in Education Law
2024-04-09 17:00
2024-04-09 18:30
15
Penn GSE Event: Steven S. Goldberg & Jolley Bruce Christman Lecture in Education Law
Join an esteemed panel for a meaningful discussion of the Pennsylvania fair funding case, a landmark 2023 ruling that deemed the state’s school funding system unconstitutional. The Steven S. Goldberg and Jolley Bruce Christman Bi-Annual Lecture in Education Law is a cross-disciplinary event hosted by Penn GSE and Penn Carey Law. All members and partners of the Penn community are welcome to attend. Please register by April 7 as space is limited.
Penn Carey Law, Michael A. Fitts Auditorium
3501 Sansom Street, Philadelphia PA
Tuesday, April 9, 2024 - 5:00pm to 6:30pm
ET
Penn Carey Law, Michael A. Fitts Auditorium
3501 Sansom Street, Philadelphia PA
Join an esteemed panel for a discussion of the landmark 2023 ruling that deemed the state’s school funding system unconstitutional. This event is open to the public and will touch on issues of interest to educators, legal professionals, and all parents and guardians of public school students in the state.
EVENT DETAILS
Speakers:
Introduction: Sophia Z. Lee, Dean and Bernard G. Segal Professor of Law, Penn Carey Law
Moderator: Katharine O. Strunk, Dean and George and Diane Weiss Professor of Education, Penn GSE
Panelists:
Deborah Gordon Klehr, Executive Director, Education Law Center
Dan Urevick-Ackelsberg, L'09, Senior Attorney, Public Interest Law Center
Tony B. Watlington Sr., Superintendent, School District of Philadelphia
Summary of Pennsylvania Fair Funding Case
The Pennsylvania Fair Funding case revolves around the issue of equitable distribution of resources for education across the state. It stemmed from a lawsuit filed in 2014 by a coalition of school districts, parents, and organizations arguing that the state's method of funding public schools was unconstitutional because it failed to provide adequate and equitable resources to all students, particularly those in low-income and minority communities. The plaintiffs contended that the over-reliance on local property taxes created significant disparities in funding between wealthy and poor school districts, violating the state constitution's mandate for a "thorough and efficient" education system.
After several years of litigation and hearings, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in a landmark decision in 2023. The court declared the state's school funding system unconstitutional and ordered the legislature to develop a new funding formula that ensures all students have access to a quality education. The deadline for the legislature to appeal was July 21, 2023. As no appeal was sought, the decision is now final.
Read more on WHYY.
https://whyy.org/articles/pennsylvania-school-funding-lawsuit-final-appeal/
Please note that the below information may have been edited for style and space guidelines.
Introduction: Sophia Z. Lee, Dean and Bernard G. Segal Professor of Law, Penn Carey Law
Moderator: Katharine O. Strunk, Dean and George and Diane Weiss Professor of Education, Penn GSE
Panelists:
Deborah Gordon Klehr, Executive Director, Education Law Center
Dan Urevick-Ackelsberg, L'09, Senior Attorney, Public Interest Law Center
Tony B. Watlington Sr., Superintendent, School District of Philadelphia
Summary of Pennsylvania Fair Funding Case
The Pennsylvania Fair Funding case revolves around the issue of equitable distribution of resources for education across the state. It stemmed from a lawsuit filed in 2014 by a coalition of school districts, parents, and organizations arguing that the state's method of funding public schools was unconstitutional because it failed to provide adequate and equitable resources to all students, particularly those in low-income and minority communities. The plaintiffs contended that the over-reliance on local property taxes created significant disparities in funding between wealthy and poor school districts, violating the state constitution's mandate for a "thorough and efficient" education system.
After several years of litigation and hearings, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in a landmark decision in 2023. The court declared the state's school funding system unconstitutional and ordered the legislature to develop a new funding formula that ensures all students have access to a quality education. The deadline for the legislature to appeal was July 21, 2023. As no appeal was sought, the decision is now final.
Read more on WHYY.
https://whyy.org/articles/pennsylvania-school-funding-lawsuit-final-appeal/
Please note that the below information may have been edited for style and space guidelines.
ABOUT THE LECTURE
Prior to his passing in 2006, Jolley Bruce Christman, GED’71, GR’87, and her late husband, Steven S. Goldberg, GR’85, established The Steven S. Goldberg and Jolley Bruce Christman Lecture in Education Law Fund at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education (Penn GSE). This bi-annual lecture honors Goldberg, providing a platform for students, alumni, faculty, staff, and the broader community to learn from some of the most pressing issues in the field today and work towards increasing equity and social justice in education.
Both Christman and Goldberg have had long standing relationships with Penn, Philadelphia, and the field of education. Prior to his passing, Goldberg was an associated faculty member both at GSE and the Law School, specializing in special education law, teaching school administrators and law students, and advocating for mediation as a way of resolving conflicts between parents and educators. He was a former professor of education and the coordinator of the Educational Leadership Program at Arcadia University and held teaching positions at Rutgers University Law School and the University of North Dakota. In the late 1970s, he served as a Lawyer for the Education Law Center in Philadelphia and later served on the Board of the Education Law Association. Christman, also an associated faculty member at GSE, is co-founder of Research for Action, an independent, not-for-profit educational research organization focused on issues of equity. She previously taught at the West Philadelphia Community Free School.
Both Christman and Goldberg have had long standing relationships with Penn, Philadelphia, and the field of education. Prior to his passing, Goldberg was an associated faculty member both at GSE and the Law School, specializing in special education law, teaching school administrators and law students, and advocating for mediation as a way of resolving conflicts between parents and educators. He was a former professor of education and the coordinator of the Educational Leadership Program at Arcadia University and held teaching positions at Rutgers University Law School and the University of North Dakota. In the late 1970s, he served as a Lawyer for the Education Law Center in Philadelphia and later served on the Board of the Education Law Association. Christman, also an associated faculty member at GSE, is co-founder of Research for Action, an independent, not-for-profit educational research organization focused on issues of equity. She previously taught at the West Philadelphia Community Free School.
Event Contact
Penn GSE Office of Development and Alumni Relationsalumni@gse.upenn.edu