50th Anniversary
1973 to 2023: ELC to Celebrate 50 Years!
This year, Education Law Center is celebrating a half century of innovative advocacy to protect and strengthen the constitutional right of the nation’s school children to public education.
Over the past several months, ELC hosted a series of events that lifted up past accomplishments, highlighted current work, and expanded on our vision for meeting the growing threat to public education as the bulwark of our democracy.
Below are the details of our past 50th anniversary events.
50th Anniversary Celebration. May 4, 2023. Robert Treat Hotel. Newark, NJ. Read the full recap here.
ELC’s 50th anniversary celebration began with a panel discussion, entitled “Promise and Perils in Public Education: Past, Present, and Future,” featuring Newark Mayor Ras Baraka, National Education Association Executive Director Kim Anderson, American Federation of Teachers NJ President Donna Chiera, University of South Carolina Professor of Law Derek Black, and Schott Foundation President & CEO Dr. John Jackson. The discussion was moderated by ELC Executive Director, Robert Kim.
The panel was followed by an evening reception attended by over 200 guests and commemorated ELC’s illustrious history and successes over the past five decades.
The program reception program included a short video prepared by the New Jersey Education Association highlighting ELC’s legacy. ELC was also honored with a video from Senator Cory Booker and a resolution from the New Jersey Legislature, presented by Assemblywoman Mila Jasey, acknowledging ELC’s many contributions to the state.
The night concluded with a farewell to ELC’s longtime Executive Director, David Sciarra, who stepped down earlier this year after 26 years leading the organization.
ELC extends its sincerest gratitude to the many other organizations, firms, and individuals who sponsored and attended the event. An electronic copy of the sponsorship journal is available here.
ELC, with your help, intends to remain a fierce advocate for public education for the next 50 years! To make a donation to ELC, please click here.
Litigating Against Private School Vouchers. Wednesday, March 8, 4-5:30 p.m. ET; co-sponsored by Public Funds Public Schools.
- This webinar, presented by ELC and PFPS, focused on private school voucher legislation and lawsuits challenging voucher programs and other diversions of public funds to private education.
Money Matters: Evidence Supporting Greater Investment in PK-12 Public Education. Wednesday, November 30, 3-5:00 p.m. ET; co-sponsored by ETS and the Learning Policy Institute (LPI). Access a recording of the webinar here.
- Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond (LPI) was joined by Dr. Rucker Johnson (University of California, Berkeley) and Dr. Jesse Rothstein (University of California, Berkeley) to discuss the latest research on the benefits of increased education spending for improving student achievement. ETS President Amit Sevak offered a welcome, and David Sciarra moderated the discussion. This session offered policymakers, stakeholders and advocates clear and tangible evidence to successfully argue for greater investments in their public schools.
Pennsylvania School Funding on Trial: View from the Trenches. Thursday, November 3, 3-4:30 p.m. ET; co-sponsored by Public Interest Law Center and Education Law Center Pennsylvania
- Katrina Robson, Dan Urevick-Ackelsberg, and Maura McInerny, the lead lawyers in the recently concluded trial in William Penn School District v. Pennsylvania Department of Education, joined ELC'd former Executive Director David Sciarra for an in-depth conversation on trial strategy, lessons learned and next steps. This invitation-only webinar was part of ELC’s Litigators’ Workshop series of ongoing convenings for lawyers representing plaintiffs in school finance and other equity lawsuits across the county.
Post Carson v. Makin: How Can We Protect Public Education? Thursday, October 6, 3-4 p.m. ET; co-sponsored by Public Funds Public Schools. Access a recording of the webinar here.
- This webinar focused on the national implications of the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Carson v. Makin—expanding the reach of religion into Maine’s public school system. The event featured Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey and Assistant Attorney General Sarah Forster, Dr. John Jackson, President and CEO of the Schott Foundation for Public Education, and Dr. Preston Green, Professor of Educational Leadership and Law at the University of Connecticut and the John and Maria Neag Professor of Urban Education at the Neag School.
Stay up-to-date on ELC’s upcoming events by signing up for ELC news alerts and following @EdLawCenter on Facebook and Twitter.
For more information on these events, contact Sharon Krengel, ELC Director of Policy, Strategic Partnerships and Communications.