Iowa Supreme Court dismisses education standards case

A divided Iowa Supreme Court declined Friday to weigh in on an ongoing debate over education standards, saying such matters are better left to other parts of state government.

A 2008 lawsuit filed by 16 students and parents in Davenport, Des Moines and Mondamin, a small community 36 miles north of Council Bluffs, had asked the court to declare that students have a right to an education of equal quality regardless of where they live. The lawsuit claims small schools with fewer than 250 students tend to be disadvantaged.

In a 4-3 vote, the court upheld a district court judge's dismissal of the lawsuit. It said the education clause in Iowa's constitution, unlike that in most states, does not mandate free public schools or require that the state's public education system be adequate, efficient, quality, thorough or uniform.

The court's majority opinion, written by Justice Edward Mansfield, said the democratic process is better suited to resolving issues of student testing, statewide standards and uniformity in education.

"We do not minimize the importance of the issues raised by the plaintiffs," Mansfield wrote. "But a respect for precedent and for our constitution requires that we stay out of this dispute."

Doug Gross, a Des Moines attorney who represented the plaintiffs, said it was the first time the court had been asked to interpret the education clause, which says the state "has a duty to use all suitable means to encourage and promote education."

"Does that guarantee an access to a quality education for all kids in Iowa regardless of where they live? That was the question before the court," Gross said. "Unfortunately the court by a split vote 4-3 decided there is no such right for Iowa kids and as a result I think a lot of Iowa kids will continue to receive a second-class education."

A spokeswoman for the Iowa Department of Education did not respond to requests for comment on the ruling.

The lawsuit named the state, the governor, the Iowa Department of Education and the director of the department. It claimed the state had failed establish an adequate school system, create or enforce standards or adopt effective teacher pay systems. It tried to force the state to develop standards, improve school assessments and close achievement gaps among districts, among other things.

Chief Justice Mark Cady voted to uphold the dismissal but wrote his own opinion, saying the allegations in the lawsuit are alarming but do not support a constitutional challenge.

"The petition, if true, may be a call to action, but it is a call under our constitutional structure for the Legislature, not the courts," Cady wrote.

The other justices voting for dismissal were Thomas Waterman and Bruce Zager. Justices David Wiggins, Brent Appel and Daryl Hecht voted to overturn the dismissal.

In a dissenting opinion, Appel said he would have sent the case back to district court for trial.

"I am firmly convinced that education is not just an important interest. It is a one-of-a-kind interest. It goes to the very heart of democratic government, to the essence of enjoyment of life itself, and to the core of human dignity," he wrote. "Rather than rush to judgment in this case without the development of an adequate factual record, I would overrule the motion to dismiss and remand the case to the district court for further proceedings."

Gross said the majority opinion is likely the final say on the matter. Since it is the state's highest court interpreting the Iowa Constitution, it will stand as precedent. If the court had ruled otherwise, and the case made it successfully through trial, he said it would have been historic.

"It would have been an earthquake in education in Iowa," Gross said. "For the first time we would have had to address the fact that some parts of our educational system are woefully lacking."

Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller, whose office defended the state in the case, said in a statement that he was pleased with the court's decision and declined further comment.