Panther Valley is one of six school districts which have long waited for their day in court in a lawsuit aimed at making Pennsylvania’s school funding formula more equitable.

They will have to wait a month longer.

A judge granted a request for a one-month delay from a state senator who is a defendant in the case. Sen. Jake Corman requested the delay due to an attorney having a medical emergency.

The suit is now scheduled to begin Nov. 12.

The suit, filed in 2014, alleges that Pennsylvania’s school funding system violates the state constitution, specifically the education clause and equal protection provision.

It alleges that the current funding formula creates an unjustifiable disparity between different school districts.

The delay in the trial is the second, after court proceedings were initially set to begin this month. The original Sept. 9 trial date was pushed to Oct. 12 so school districts could prepare information showing the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The updated information only reinforces the undeniable reality of Pennsylvania’s school funding system: Students who need the most get the least, because of where they live. Students in low-wealth districts were disproportionately impacted by lack of sufficient school resources during the pandemic,” said Maura McInerney, legal director for the Education Law Center-PA. “Since we filed the case, the disparities have only grown. Our legislative leaders have acknowledged this reality but refuse to comply with their constitutional duty to provide a quality public education to all children, regardless of local wealth.”

William Penn, Greater Johnstown, Lancaster, Shenandoah Valley and Wilkes-Barre Area school districts have joined in the case with Panther Valley, along with Pennsylvania Association of Rural and Small Schools, The Pennsylvania NAACP, and four parents.

Education Law Center, whose attorneys brought the case along with the Public Interest Law Center, says that Pennsylvania ranks 45th in the country when it comes to the share of school funding which comes from the state. A report prepared by a Penn State professor on behalf of the petitioners claims that 86 percent of students attend districts which are underfunded, with minorities disproportionately affected.