"Leandro: The Case for a Sound Basic Education" - A WRAL Documentary

The Leandro case has circulated through North Carolina courts for nearly 30 years now, but many parents of school-aged children are hearing the name for the first time. WRAL’s investigative documentary reporter Cristin Severance and photojournalist Jay Jennings traveled across the state to uncover what’s really at stake when it comes to your child’s education. “Leandro: The Case for a Sound Basic Education” is hosted by Severance and premiered on WRAL-TV and WILM-TV Wednesday, March 16, at 7:30 p.m.
The landmark education case was filed in 1994 by five poor counties which said they couldn’t afford to give their students an adequate education. After almost 30 years, the lawsuit is still going on and affects funding for every school system in North Carolina. Parents say the problems in school districts across the state have gotten worse, and many blame politics for the lack in progress.
Thus WRAL Documentary dives into the facts of the case, its impact on students in North Carolina and why there could finally be a resolution that parents should be aware of in 2022.​ .
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[@victorjones9951]

What would happen if this video were shown in every church in every Sunday service in NC until this case is resolved and these families are treated like citizens of the USA? Why do we continue the blatantly unjust practice of funding along district and county lines?

[@jerrygatts3467]

Maybe money isn't the solution. It sounds like changes in child behavior started to move the needle at Northwest. Culture. Culture. Culture.

[@OddityOverseer13]

But even if the culture changes, how can you expect to attract good teachers to schools if they're being underpaid? Why would a hard-working, passionate teacher want to stay in an underpaid environment, when they could make a lot more money by switching to another field?

[@jerrygatts3467]

@@OddityOverseer13 why in the world would a person become a teacher if money was important? A truly passionate teacher wouldn’t be there for the money… and they wouldn’t run away from a lack of it.

[@OddityOverseer13]

@@jerrygatts3467 So teachers should survive on passion alone? Shouldn't hard work and dedication be rewarded? Because the budgets given to public schools right now certainly says it shouldn't. And I guess they shouldn't be able to make enough money to pay off their incredibly high student loan debts? Or maybe they shouldn't have gotten those student loan debts in the first place if they couldn't afford them. But then how would they be suitably trained to teach students? Also, what culture change are you referring to exactly, in your original comment? I'm genuinely curious.

[@jerrygatts3467]

@@OddityOverseer13 I notice there’s nothing about the kids in your comments. Sad.

[@OddityOverseer13]

@@jerrygatts3467 And I notice you didn't address any of the questions in my comment. But since I'm genuinely interested in having a conversation about this, I'll address your point. Of course the kids are important! The whole goal of this lawsuit is to make public schools more equitable, so that ALL children are educated well. But how can effective education happen, if the educators are overworked and don't have the resources necessary to do their job? In the video, a principal said they are doing the best they can with the money they have, but students in higher-income areas simply have access to more opportunities, such as field trips. It's one thing to learn about topics in a book, but it's a whole lot better to see those topics in person. Students in these underserved communities can't afford to take students to see these things.