A state judge has dealt the first notable setback to recent efforts in Louisiana to reverse the adoption of Common Core education standards.
On Friday, Judge Timothy Kelley rejected a request from 17 state lawmakers to issue an injunction against the continued implementation of Common Core. Kelley said doing so would cause undue harm to the state’s schoolchildren, who are just beginning a new school year.
The suing lawmakers claim that Common Core’s adoption was illegal because the state’s board of education failed to follow the state’s Administrative Procedures Act. The board and State Superintendent John White have countered that the law never applied in the first place to the adoption of academic standards.
The lawsuit is one of several swirling around Common Core in Louisiana. Gov. Bobby Jindal, who once supported the standards before turning sharply against them this year, is also suing the state school board for continuing with plans to use a Common Core-aligned standardized test after an executive order commanded them to stop.
Meanwhile, the board has joined a lawsuit by parents against Jindal that accuses him of issuing illegal executive orders. A separate judge heard the latter case on Wednesday, ruling that the parents had the right to sue but also declaring that Governor Jindal would not have to be questioned under oath.
The ruling mitigates the tremendous uncertainty the state’s school districts faced with a new school year about to begin. Now, they can expect Common Core to stay in place for some time while the various suits work their way through court.
State Superintendent John White, once an ally of Jindal who has been converted into a bitter foe over the Common Core fight, hailed the judge’s ruling as a victory.
“Today’s ruling allows teachers and students to continue raising expectations in Louisiana. Our students are just as smart and capable as any in America. We’ve been working for four years to teach them to the highest standards in our country. Today’s ruling continues that progress,” White said in a statement.
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