RALEIGH — Attorney General Josh Stein released a statement last week as Solicitor General Ryan Park began arguments for the Leandro school funding case in front of the North Carolina Supreme Court.

“… Lawyers from my office are arguing that we must invest in our public schools so our students can get the sound, basic public education that is their constitutional right. North Carolina — our executive branch, legislature and courts — has a constitutional duty to deliver that education.

“It makes no sense that we’ve spent decades fighting over the simple principle that we need to have a good teacher in every classroom and a good principal in every school. The Supreme Court recently reaffirmed that principle. Now, the legislative leadership is trying to undo that landmark victory for public education because they don’t want to adequately invest in our kids’ future, and they believe the new Court will let them get away with it.

“North Carolina is 49th in the country in public education investment as a share of our economy and 46th in starting teacher pay. It is long past time for us to do better for our young people, and it starts with the court reaffirming that truth in this case.”