equal access

ELC Challenges Harmful Federal Priorities That Undermine Public Schools

ELC submitted public comments June 18, 2025, in response to the U.S. Department of Education’s proposed priorities and definitions for discretionary grant programs. The department aims to prioritize funding for “evidence-based literacy, expanding education choice, and returning education to the states.”


ELC’s comments focus on our concerns that the administration’s stated intent, made clear in their press release, would abandon proven school initiatives like social emotional learning; diversity, equity and inclusion practices; and efforts to recruit and retain diverse educators. Our comments also denounce the department’s harmful “education choice” agenda, which would divert taxpayer dollars away from traditional public schools to private and charter schools that serve fewer of our most vulnerable student groups and often fail to deliver better outcomes.


Finally, our comments underscore the critical role of the U.S. Department of Education in funding public schools, enforcing education laws, and protecting students from discrimination and civil rights violations.

2004: ELC Challenges Racial Inequities in Teacher Placement

Each month in 2025, we are highlighting an ELC milestone or success as we mark our 50th anniversary. See our timeline of ELC milestones here. 

Two decades ago, Education Law Center turned its attention to the issue of racial inequities in students’ access to qualified teachers in Philadelphia schools – initially by filing a federal civil rights complaint.

In a complaint to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, ELC lawyers alleged that in the School District of Philadelphia, schools serving larger percentages of students of color were more likely to have uncertified or inexperienced teachers and higher teacher turnover than schools serving larger percentages of white students.

“A knowledgeable and experienced teacher can make a huge difference in a child’s achievement,” Len Rieser, then ELC co-director, said at the time.

ELC cited studies to buttress its argument, which also applied to students experiencing poverty. At that time, Research for Action, for instance, found that it was “not uncommon” at middle schools with the highest percentages of students experiencing poverty for 20% of the staff to have less than a full year of teaching experience in the district.

The complaint noted that in district middle schools that served 90% or more students of color, 20% of teachers were not certified. But in middle schools where most students were white, only 1.4% of teachers were uncertified. Schools that had the highest proportions of students of color and students experiencing poverty also had higher levels of teacher turnover, ELC argued.

The complaint brought scrutiny to the way the district assigned teachers; at the time, qualified and experienced teachers were allowed to pick their own assignments.

“And schools serving large numbers of students of color got left behind in the process,” Rieser said. He told Education Week: “We have a two-tier [education] system along racial lines.”

The Office for Civil Rights eventually dismissed the ELC complaint, citing other pending litigation against the district.

Even so, concerns about the racial inequities in students’ access to qualified teachers led to the formation of a coalition of more than two dozen advocacy and student groups, including ELC, in what was called the Teacher Equity Campaign. The immediate aim was to influence ongoing teacher contract negotiations. Issues included the district’s practices in school assignment, hiring, and placement of teachers.

The resulting 2004 contract agreement, reached between the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers and the School Reform Commission, included new policies for school-based selection of teachers instead of teachers self-selecting, limits on seniority-based transfer rights, and incentives for teachers who sought employment in selected “incentive schools” and in selected subjects.

ELC and the Teacher Equity Campaign continued to advocate for further reforms in subsequent contract negotiations.

News outlets and education researchers in recent years have documented continuing inequities and high rates of teacher turnover in city schools predominantly serving students of color and students from low-income neighborhoods. 

In response, the School District of Philadelphia has employed additional reform strategies to strengthen teacher recruitment and retention, including financial incentives. In the 2024 teachers’ contract, for instance, the district agreed to pay $1,200 retention bonuses, re-engagement bonuses to all teachers, and $2,500 bonuses to teachers in schools with high numbers of vacancies.

ELC continues to advocate for racial equity in teacher quality, and this was an important issue in our school funding case.

Joint Statement Opposing HB 1152

As civil rights, youth, and education advocacy organizations across Pennsylvania, we oppose HB 1532 and all similar efforts that perpetuate racism and sexism. Our schools bear a responsibility to teach our children accurate history and dismantle biases. The bill prohibits our teachers from accurately teaching history, improperly bans anti-bias training, and would make culturally relevant teaching nearly impossible. The nearly 50 organizations from across Pennsylvania who have signed this letter oppose HB 1532. We urge the legislature to reject this harmful bill.

Show Your Support For Senate Bill 324: “Fostering a Smooth Transition for Graduation”

Please join ELC in advocating for the passage of important legislation, S.B. 324, to advance the educational rights of Pennsylvania students with experience in the foster care and juvenile justice systems and students experiencing homelessness. The bill, “Fostering a Smooth Transition for Graduation,” ensures these highly mobile youth receive credit for academic work completed, obtain an individualized graduation plan, are assigned a point of contact, and have expanded options to access a high school diploma. Learn more from our fact sheet or the bill’s text.  Show your support by adding your sign-on to a letter in support of this important legislation, which will bring high school graduation within reach for highly mobile students. Please sign on as an organization or individual by using the form here. Thank you for standing with our students! 

ELC and CASA Philadelphia Webinar for Educational Decision Makers (EDMs)

This webinar was hosted by the Education Law Center-PA and CASA Philadelphia as a training for court-appointed Educational Decision Makers (EDMs) who represent children in foster care to ensure their access to a quality public education. The presentation features an overview of an “EDM Toolkit” prepared by these agencies and includes education issues relating to enrollment, access to special education services, and school discipline.  The Toolkit helps Pennsylvania CASA programs train CASAs to serve as EDM volunteers and serves as an ongoing resource for EDMs to address questions and challenges that encounter in meeting the needs of children in foster care. The Toolkit includes checklists, suggestions, and resources to help EDMs ensure that students who are in foster care have school stability, access to needed services, and achieve academic success.

Click here for the toolkit, here to view the webinar PowerPoint slides, and here to stream a recording of the webinar.

ELC Files Comments with the US Commission on Civil Rights Emphasizing the Importance of Federal Guidance and Regulations Designed to Protect Students of Color with Disabilities from Discrimination.

On January 16, 2018, ELC submitted comments to the US Commission on Civil Rights to highlight the fundamental importance of federal guidance and regulations in protecting the education rights of students of color who have disabilities.   Citing data showing significant and continuing disparities in educational opportunities and outcomes due to discrimination on the basis of race and disability, the comments conclude:  “ELC applauds the U.S Commission on Civil Rights’ efforts to highlight the issue of discriminatory discipline of students of color with disabilities and the need for continued enforcement of federal laws that directly addresses racial and disability disproportionality. We urge federal policymakers to continue and enhance enforcement through full implementation of the Guidance to encourage districts to remedy profound disciplinary disparities among students of color with disabilities.”  The comments were prepared by ELC attorneys  Reynelle Brown Staley, Deborah Klehr, Maura McInerney, and Kristina Moon.  Read the comments here.