State School Superintendent Addresses Joint Appropriations Committee

Superintendent Kathy Cox told a joint General Assembly Appropriations Committee that the Department of Education is proud of increased graduation rates and the new state curriculum. Cox said that the state continues to be plagued by low overall achievement rates and disparity between wealthy and low-income districts. Questioned by House Appropriations Chair Ben Harbin about how the state's equalization grants will close this gap, Cox admitted that the Governor's recommended budget does not fully fund statewide equal education. "We're not funding it to the letter of the law," she said, adding that the Department of Education expects legislation this session to alter the equalization formula.

Georgia is currently being sued by the parents of students in low-income districts who claim the state violates the Constitutional guarantee of equal education for all students.