Colorado+Ed+Clause

Education Clause in State Constitution

Public education in the state of Colorado, as in all states is governed by an education clause. The education clause exists in the Colorado constitution and was written in 1876. (//Public Schools Provisions in State Constitutions p.1027)// Colorado’s education clause states that “The general assembly shall, as soon as practicable, provide for the establishment and maintenance of a thorough and uniform system of free public schools throughout the state, wherein all residents of the state, between the ages of six and twenty-one years, may be educated gratuitously.” ([]) There exists ambiguity within the wording. That lack of specificity provides for legal challenges. These legal challenges help define many of the specific of t he clasues.

A case was brought before the courts in 1977. 68 schoolchildren from brought suit against the Colorado State Board of Education, claiming taht there existed disparities in school funding that deprived them of equal educational opportunities. This lack of equity was stated to be a violation of the state constitution referencing the Colorado education clause. The trial court sided with the plaintiffs, but the Colorado Supreme Court reversed that decision in //Lujan v. Colorado State Board of Education//, 649 P.2d 1005 (1982). "The supreme court concluded that the state's education clause did not require 'absolute equality in educational services or expenditures.' The court added that the goal of local school control was a legitimate state purpose which justified the state's school financing system under the equal protection clause. Addition challenges ensued where the claim was about adequate educational opportunities. The legislature reponded by passing the 1988 Public School Finance Act. ([]) This formula has been revised by the legislature as it attempts to balance the needs of public schools and constitutional law.