Report Card on American Education: A State-by-State Analysis, 1983-1984 to 2004-2005

Earlier this year a unique class-action lawsuit was filed in New Jersey on behalf of parents whose children are trapped in failing public schools. What makes this lawsuit unique is that it seeks a remedy for the children
trapped in failing schools and not for the educational system—like too many previous lawsuits have done.

Crawford v. Davy was filed in the Superior Court of New Jersey in Newark, against State Commissioner of Education Lucille Davy and 30 more defendants. The case represents a class of more than 60,000 students in 96 failing schools in 25 districts and argues that the denial of basic educational opportunities violates the children’s right to a thorough and effi cient education under the state constitution, and to equal protection of the laws under the state and federal constitutions.

This national test case will bear watching since some estimates put the number of students in failing public schools on a national
level at over 4 million. If this case is successful, it is almost guaranteed that parents who have grown discontented with our country’s schools will look to push the proverbial educational reform envelope and seek similar remedies in other states.