Opinion ID: 2254540
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: The Importance of a Sound Basic Education [1]

Text: It is commonly said that education is the State's most important responsibility. Education is just one of the many responsibilities of the State. Only a few of the responsibilities involving the provision of certain services are actually mentioned in the State Constitution. These include the incarceration of criminals, [2] helping the needy, [3] and providing housing for the poor and the elderly. [4] Of the three, only the section dealing with helping the needy contains the mandatory shall, although it then gives the Legislature the discretion to determine from time to time how the help to those it classifies as needy is to be provided. There is no discretion, however, in the statement, The legislature shall provide for the maintenance and support of a system of free common schools, wherein all the children of this state may be educated (art XI, § 1). The only discretion is in the hands of parents who do not have to send their children to public schools. Since education is the most important responsibility of the State, it follows, a priori, that building schools that provide children with a sound education is more important than building jails to incarcerate criminals, shelters to house the homeless, and low income housing for the poor. This order of priorities recognizes that a child who has an opportunity for a sound education is less likely to become a criminal or be homeless.