FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 11, 2002
CONTACTS: Rural Trust: Greg Malhoit,
919-833-4541, gmalhoit@bellsouth.net
Arkansas Public Policy Panel: Eric Reece
501-376-7913 x 11

Public Interest Groups File Petition for Friend of the
Court Brief in Lakeview School Funding Case

Little Rock, AR -- Two public interest non-profits, the Arkansas Public Policy Panel and the Rural School and Community Trust (Rural Trust), today filed a joint petition before the Arkansas Supreme Court, requesting permission to file a friend of the court brief in the landmark Lakeview school funding case that is currently on appeal.

The groups are filing the petition because they want to ensure that the needs of Arkansas' rural schools and communities are taken into account by the court when it hears the case later this year. The groups are in favor of upholding the decision reached by Circuit Judge Collins Kilgore who ruled that Arkansas schools are unconstitutionally underfunded and that the school funding formula is unconstitutionally inequitable. The state has appealed that ruling to the Arkansas Supreme Court.

Forty-two percent of Arkansas schools are located in rural communities with populations of 2,500 or less. Arkansas ranks number one in the nation in the percentage of students who attend small rural schools. With nearly half the state's population living in rural areas, education reform in Arkansas must account for rural education, which has unique benefits and needs.

If allowed to file a brief with the high court, the groups will focus on the areas of funding for teachers, school facilities and students' access to advanced course offerings and an enriched curriculum. Rachel Tompkins, President of the Rural Trust stated: "The outcome of the Lakeview case will have a profound impact on the quality of education received by all children in Arkansas, but especially children attending under-funded rural schools."

The Arkansas Public Policy Panel is working with citizens in rural communities, particularly in the delta region, to identify challenges and take steps to make Arkansas schools and school policy better at the local and the state level. "All youth can learn, given the appropriate resources and time on task," said Panel education organizer Mary Scott of Moro, Arkansas

The Panel is holding community forums to encourage citizens to be involved in school issues. The most recently held forums were held in Marianna and Helena last December. The issues raised at the forums so far include teacher pay, fair discipline policies, parental involvement, and community support for local schools.

"We started this project because school policies are going to change significantly in the next few years -- parents, students, and community folks need to be heard and participate when school boards, and the legislature are creating those changes," said Eric Reece panel education organizer from Little Rock.

The Arkansas Public Policy Panel is a non-profit organization that works with community groups and institutional partners across the State of Arkansas who are concerned with public education policy, government accountability, civil rights, clean environment, economic fairness, and the agriculture.

The Rural Trust is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting equal educational opportunity and improving student learning for students who attend public schools located in rural communities across the United States.

A copy of the petition filed before the Supreme Court can be found on the Panel website: www.ARPanel.org

For more information on how you and your community can get involved in education issues, call the Panel at (501) 376-7913 or e-mail appp@igc.org.