Issue: Ensuring equal opportunituy for children whose first language is not English
On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in the English-language learning case Horne vs Flores.
A lawsuit was filed in 1992 on behalf of Miriam Flores, a third-grader from Nogales who is now in her early 20s. Her parents said she was not learning properly in a classroom where the teacher taught only in English.
In 2000, U.S. District Judge Alfredo Marquez ruled in favor of the family and the Arizona Center for Law in the Public Interest, which filed a class-action lawsuit.
The state and the plaintiff have argued over what that means in terms of what the state must do to adequately create and fund a program for English-language learners. The plaintiffs before the Supreme Court, state lawmakers and the state secretary of education, have appealed, seeking to be freed of federal court oversight of ELL programs. Arguments will be presented by lawyers Ken Starr and David Cantelme, representing the lawmakers. A decision is expected later this year.