Education Equity

Students don't leave their rights at the schoolhouse doors. ACLU-DE fights to protect students’ rights in the classroom and ensure access to a fair, adequate education for all.

Classroom

What you need to know

Less than half

of Delaware’s students are proficient in English Language Arts

2-3x higher

suspension rates for Black and brown students when compared to white peers who commit the same offenses

All of Delaware’s students deserve a safe, equitable, and proficient education.

Yet schools in our state and across the country have a long way to go before that vision becomes a reality. Violations of students’ rights, historic underfunding of public schools, systemic racism, and violence in schools are all-too-common occurrences behind school walls. Our education work focuses on tackling those injustices to help make schools in Delaware everything that we know they can be.

Through advocacy and direct service in schools, our education campaigns work to ensure all children receive the learning environment that they deserve. We challenge inequitable and unfair funding. We fight to disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline so that our education systems open up doors of opportunities, instead of putting kids behind bars. And we protect the rights of all students — especially students of color, students with disabilities, students who are English language learners, and students who live in often-ignored zip codes.

The Latest

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School Discipline

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Equity in Education

News & Commentary
Fair Discipline Training Coming Soon

Coming Soon: A Fair Discipline Training Toolkit

Coming Soon: A Fair Discipline Training Toolkit to help teach educators and families how to build inclusive communities in schools.
News & Commentary
By casting your ballot as an informed voter, you hold the power to shape your community.

Meet the Candidates: Appoquinimink and Capital School Board Elections

Delaware's school board elections are Tuesday, May 13. Polls are open from 7 a.m. - 8 p.m.
Court Case
Sep 18, 2018

Delaware Public Schools Litigation

Update 4/14/2021: Agreements reached on all tracks of the Public Schools Litigation!
Court Case
Oct 02, 2015

Standing for Homeless Students' Rights

We recently acted on behalf of three middle school students who are experiencing homelessness. The siblings were displaced from their home because their mother had to take medical leave from her job and was unable to afford housing.
Court Case
May 04, 2015

Case Docket: A Roundup of Our Recent Legal Work

Voting Rights, Police Misconduct, Transgender Rights, Freedom of Religion, Preventing Economic Discrimination, Student Access to School Library Materials, and Racial Discrimination in Municipal Employment. We've been busy.
Court Case
Apr 24, 2015

Keeping Kids in School

A top priority for the ACLU here in Delaware is a comprehensive approach to protecting students’ rights and ensuring equal access to a quality education.