Nearly two years after California superior court judge Rolf M. Treu struck down five key sections of California鈥檚 job-protection laws for teachers鈥攁 ruling that has spawned copycat lawsuits in other states鈥攁n appeals court in Los Angeles yesterday completely overturned his verdict.
In a unanimous decision in finding that the challenged provisions鈥攚hich grant teachers鈥� due process rights, establish the time framework for schools to make tenure decisions at 18 months, and require school districts to lay off teachers based on seniority鈥攚ere the root cause of the troubling pattern of poor and minority students being more likely to get taught by ineffective teachers.
Not surprisingly , the new ruling in the Vergara v. California case has been met with conflicting reactions鈥攁s well as vows on both sides to press for change.
In a statement, the California Teachers Association, to 鈥渢he allegations made and millions of dollars spent by wealthy anti-union 鈥榚ducation reformers鈥� to bypass voters, parents, and the legislature with harmful education policy changes.鈥�
But the backers of the suit lambasted the ruling鈥檚 logic and vowed to take their fight to the state鈥檚 highest court.
鈥淓very student deserves a great public education; ,鈥� said David Welch, the Silicon Valley entrepreneur who helped fund the suit. 鈥淭oday, the courts failed to safeguard students鈥� constitutional rights. I hope and expect that the California Supreme Court will step in and protect the rights of millions of students across California.鈥�
鈥淭丑别 Court of Appeal鈥檚 decision mistakenly blames local school districts for the egregious constitutional violations students are suffering each and every day,鈥� added Theodore J. Boutrous, Jr., lead counsel for the plaintiffs. 鈥淏ut the mountain of evidence we put on at trial proved鈥攂eyond any reasonable dispute鈥攖hat the irrational, arbitrary, and abominable laws at issue in this case shackle school districts and impose severe and irreparable harm on students. We are disappointed by the Court of Appeal鈥檚 decision today, but expect that the California Supreme Court will have the final say.鈥�
Other observers focused on the practical aspects of the ruling and the school-equity issues that remain at stake.
鈥淚鈥檓 sad, not because of the decision necessarily, but I just hope that the conversation doesn鈥檛 die with it,鈥� said Katharine Strunk, an associate professor at the University of Southern California鈥檚 Rossier School of Education. 鈥淭丑别 research is incontrovertible, every piece of high-quality research says that the kids who need it the most aren鈥檛 being served well. It doesn鈥檛 matter if the laws are unconstitutional or not, we must tackle that head on.鈥�
American Federation of Teachers president Randi Weingarten argued that .
鈥淲hen it comes to tenure and due process, these are essential protections for teachers to do their jobs, but they should never be used as a cloak for incompetence or an excuse for managers not to manage,鈥� said Weingarten. 鈥淭his is what the court ultimately found when it concluded many school districts are able to use the existing law effectively鈥攊t is not the law that is the problem, but rather the administration of the law. Here鈥檚 the simple truth: We cannot fire or sanction our way to high-quality schools. We stand ready to roll up our sleeves and do the hard work necessary for every public school to be a place where parents want to send their children, where educators want to work and where children thrive.鈥�
Weingarten said that, moving forward, districts and states should be focusing on the 鈥渧ery real teacher shortage problem.鈥�
John Rogers, a professor at the University of California at Los Angeles鈥檚 education school who had supported an amicus brief opposing the original ruling, echoed that point.
鈥淭o some extent the decision puts to rest a case that was always in something of a time warp,鈥� said Rogers. 鈥淭丑别 case arose out of a set of political dynamics that were created by the recession and budget cuts. We are in a very different political context now, as we struggle with how to deal with the teacher shortage. The critical issue is getting more people who are deeply committed and well-trained into the profession and supporting them through their careers.鈥�
Teacher shortages, Rogers asserts, are felt hardest in schools that primarily serve poor and minority students.
鈥淚 was in Los Angeles during the late 1990s and early 2000s after the legislature decided to decrease class sizes, despite the fact that so many teachers were retiring,鈥� said Rogers. 鈥淚n south Los Angeles districts like Lynwood, Compton, and Inglewood, more than 50 percent of teachers lacked a credential. We need to find ways to address the shortage and do it equitably.鈥�
While the case will almost certainly be appealed to the state Supreme Court, Lily Eskelsen Garcia鈥攑resident of the National Education Association, the nation鈥檚 largest teachers union鈥攁rgued that the .
鈥淭丑别 Vergara v. State of California lawsuit was an example of using our court system for political goals. The unanimous three-judge panel鈥檚 opinion states it clearly. The plaintiffs鈥� case鈥攊nstead of addressing and proposing solutions to the real problems鈥攆ocused on the wrong issues, proposed the wrong solutions, and used the wrong legal process,鈥� she said in a statement. 鈥淓nsuring that every student gets a good education is a critical goal but one that can鈥檛 be solved with stripping our teachers of their rights. Today was a win for our educators, our schools and most importantly, our students.鈥�
USC鈥檚 Strunk is less sure.
鈥淲hat I鈥檝e been saying about Vergara all along is I don鈥檛 know if it鈥檚 right for the courts to do this,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut we鈥檝e been trying for years to fix this in the legislature and through the proposition system. If you look at polls, they consistently say that the public does not agree with tenure laws as is, but we can鈥檛 make a change in Sacramento. I hope that regardless of what happens with the Supreme Court that this will serve as a wake up call for legislatures. We need to really be thinking hard about how we staff schools.
鈥淭丑别 research is clear,鈥� she added. 鈥淲e know providing good teachers is the most important thing we can do in schools.鈥�