Pennsylvania’s state education department has violated its legal obligation to investigate claims of “massive curriculum deficiencies” in city schools, a group of parents whose children attend Philadelphia schools claimed in a lawsuit filed last week.
During the 2013-14 school year, parents filed 825 complaints with the state education department on issues ranging from overcrowding to “squalid and insufficient toilet facilities.” The problems all stem from district-level budget cuts made necessary by a lack of state funds, the parents said. The complaints were met with either a form letter saying the matter was a local one or no response at all.
A spokesman for the education department had no comment.
