Parents, children, and advocates know there is no substitute for a good education. But in too many low-income communities, schools are overcrowded, crumbling, and simply unable to meet the educational needs of millions of children.

That is why broad-based coalitions of community residents have come together to give every child a chance to learn in a safe, healthy, and accessible school.

By supporting bond measures, revising tax structures, and demanding that all communities have a right to a basic level school construction and rehabilitation funding, communities are working to give every child equal educational opportunity.

In 2005, PolicyLink partnered with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) to produce Ending School Overcrowding in California, Building Quality Schools for All Children, which illustrated the school overcrowding crisis and analyzed the state’s New Construction and Critically Overcrowded Schools programs; discussed structural barriers to addressing overcrowding; and outlined recommendations for a more equitable distribution of funds.

PolicyLink worked with community advocates and policymakers to craft new state legislation that addressed many issues raised in the report, which led to the incorporation of equity principles and safeguards in successive school bond issues.

Resources

Safety, Growth, and Equity: School Facilities