THE GREAT EDUCATION AMENDMENT DEBATE
A Deep Dive into Changing the State Constitution on Education MSBA is in the process of establishing focus groups of school board members from around the state to gather information to help formulate our position. The three articles on the following pages highlight some of the issues surrounding a move to change the constitution. Justice Alan Page and Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis President Neel Kashkari focus on why changing the constitution would help. Political Science Professor David Schultz focuses on how there are better things we could do to close achievement gaps. Finally, a group of superintendents have written an article about some changes they’d like to see before a constitutional amendment goes forward.
Quality Education Should Be a Civil Right By Alan Page and Neel Kashkari
Alan Page
Neel Kashkari
The most powerful and positive changes to advance justice in our nation’s history have come by amending the U.S. Constitution to establish or expand civil rights. From the First Amendment guaranteeing freedom of speech, religion, and assembly, to the 13th Amendment abolishing slavery to the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote, civil rights have transformed our nation over time. That is why we propose amending Minnesota’s constitution to make education an individual civil right guaranteeing each child a quality public education. By enshrining
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education as a civil right in the constitution, we will establish that meeting the educational needs of all children is our state’s highest priority for generations to come. Our Constitution embodies our core beliefs and commitments and is the springboard from which our systems grow. Currently, Minnesota’s constitution only guarantees children access to an “adequate” system of public education. What is a system that is on average adequate? It is a system that provides excellent education for some while utterly failing others. Other states have updated their constitutional education clauses, but
MINNESOTA SCHOOL BOARDS ASSOCIATION | JOURNAL
