Elizabeth Warren’s schools plan would make SC public education stronger and fairer

For the half-million kids living in poverty in South Carolina, public education may be their only shot at the American dream — and our middle-income kids depend on public schools nearly as much.

The quality of our schools determines who is ready for college and who is able to compete within and beyond our states’ borders, in addition, what becomes of these children will determine what becomes of our economy and ultimately our democracy.

Of course, Sen. Elizabeth Warren has a plan for that — and the stakes for South Carolina couldn’t be higher.

South Carolina has long struggled to provide quality public education because it lacks adequate resources and has often poorly distributed the limited resources that are available. We spend less on those who need the most. And when we combine those inequalities with intense pockets of segregation in places like Columbia, Charleston and Orangeburg, we have an educational system in South Carolina that is separate and unequal.

It’s no surprise, then, that more than 10,000 teachers, parents and students showed up at the state capitol last year to demand a solution to these and other education problems.

Many South Carolinians will also be looking to make their voices heard on these issues during Saturday’s Democratic Party presidential primary. And the candidates have been paying attention: several have plans to drive provide more resources to needy schools like those in South Carolina — and some have proposals on how to chip away at entrenched segregation.

Warren’s solid plan

Warren’s plan, however, is a cut above the rest; it has the potential to break the vicious cycle of underfunded and segregated schools.

The most obvious first step is to make our investment in public schools match students’ needs. My research estimates that low-income students need about $90 billion a year more than what states currently spend. Warren proposes meeting states halfway in closing that gap, with the federal government offering to cover $45 billion a year.

On top of that Warren proposes that the federal government finally live up to the promise it made in the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act in 1975; she wants the government to cover 40% of the cost of special education services.

For states like South Carolina, this type of boost could help it finally do right by its students, and it would lead to a change in funding that would also disrupt the conditions that incentivize segregation and resource hoarding along racial lines.

As our democracy is seemingly tearing apart at the seams, public education remains that one tie that seeks to bind us together — and Americans of all political stripes across this country have been demanding that we fully fund public education.

For the first time in a long time, I see a plausible plan to do just that — and it is Sen. Warren’s plan.

Derek Black is a law professor in USC’s School of Law.

This story was originally published February 27, 2020 at 12:31 PM.