State education secretary seeks lawsuit dismissal over conditions in Phila. schools
Pennsylvania's secretary of education on Friday asked Commonwealth Court to dismiss a lawsuit against her that accuses her of failing to investigate complaints from Philadelphia school parents over poor conditions in schools.
Pennsylvania's secretary of education on Friday asked Commonwealth Court to dismiss a lawsuit against her that accuses her of failing to investigate complaints from Philadelphia school parents over poor conditions in schools.
The complaints, Carolyn Dumaresq contends in court filings, do not constitute "curriculum deficiencies," so she is not compelled to investigate.
"The petition fails to state a claim of violation of that regulation," the response said in part.
"It is outrageous for the state to disclaim any responsibility for these problems," Benjamin Geffen, staff attorney at the Public Interest Law Center of Philadelphia, said in a statement issued in response and published on the group's website.
"The state's failure to fully fund public education in Philadelphia and in districts across the state is the real reason our students must contend with grim conditions when they walk into schools each day."
The Public Interest Law Center, on behalf of seven Philadelphia parents and the group Parents United for Public Education, filed the lawsuit against Dumaresq in Commonwealth Court last month. They took the action after the state Education Department failed to respond to more than 800 parent complaints ranging from overcrowding to "squalid and insufficient toilet facilities." According to the law center, the schools packed as many as 45 students into a classroom, dropped foreign language and physical education classes, and eliminated guidance counselors.
The complaints were lodged last school year, as the cash-strapped district slashed positions and programs in an attempt to close a deficit. Parents blame the problems on lack of state funding that forced the budget cuts.
Parents either received a form letter or got no response at all from the state Education Department.
Officials at the Public Interest Law Center have said they also plan a separate suit about education funding.
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