The States and the Schools

Although the immediate problems in securing the passage of President Kennedy's aid to education bill seem about over, the long run headaches are just beginning. The two biggest issues preventing the adoption of the bill--the church-state controversy and states rights--have been virtually settled. Public opinion has been appeased now that Catholic school officials have accepted the prospect of a separate bill, similar to Title III of the NDEA, calling for loans to non-public schools. States rights Congressmen, feeling the strain on their pocketbooks more than on their principles, will accept the bill if the clause which sets aside ten per cent of each state's Federal aid for predetermined slum areas is deleted. The revised bill would give the states one hundred per cent control of the allocation of the money.

Unfortunately, though this concession will give $23 billion to the nation's elementary and secondary schools, it will destroy much of the educational effectiveness of the bill. The Administration's purpose in setting aside the ten per cent was to bring the educational standards of the depressed areas up to the national mean. If this were accomplished any further federal or state aid would then serve to raise the national level instead of only benefiting areas and increasing the inequality of teaching and salary scales.

Channeling all the federal ducation funds through state legislatures would perpetuate the disproportion of money going to the "upstate" rural districts over the under-represented cities. This situation now exists with the result that in the South many city children are taught under inferior conditions, while the size and quality of suburban schools increase.

States rights Congressmen object to the ten per cent clause because it is a form of government control in an matter which could be handled by the states. There is no way to deny this charge; but there is also no reason to do so. The clause is a source of federal intervention--which is almost indispensable to many states. Especially in the South school improvements with state funds often mean unnecessary tightening of belts on other issues. Thus, both the schools and, say, highway construction must suffer. If Congress knocks out the ten per cent clause it will be hindering rather than helping the future of state control over educational policy.