Hancock vs. Driscoll

"Money Isn't the Answer", is the Sun’s editorial claim when decrying the Hancock v Driscoll lawsuit. Lowell and 19 other school districts want the state to spend more on education, and so far one State Supreme Court Judge has ruled for the plaintiffs. The Sun insists that “wads of cash” won’t solve the problem that some students “aren’t receiving a public education equal to that of every other Massachusetts student.” They cite social and family problems that cause student failure, including hunger, alcoholism, drug addictions, and homelessness, but there is no push from the newspaper to use resources to try to solve these problems. Instead, the Sun has endorsed an incumbent who has cut social programs while giving tax cuts to the rich, leaving us with the high-minded, but uniquely cynical, sentiment that “family and societal problems must be solved…. before every child can receive an equitable public education.” This is cold comfort to families in crisis and to urban teachers daily facing students who are living the very lives the Sun describes. In the meantime, the public schools are expected to perform at a higher level than ever before, meet unrealistic targets under ‘No Child Left Behind’ and face sanctions and further drain of resources when they fail. Reasoning such as this truly puts our schools, and children, between a rock and a hard place.