The First District U.S. Court of Appeals has upheld a lower court’s decision rejecting Providence students’ claim that they are being denied the right to a civics education.  
The 14 students, who sued on behalf of all Rhode Island students, will now petition the U.S. Supreme Court to hear their case, according to one of their lawyers, Jennifer Wood of the Rhode Island Center for Justice.  
The suit was filed in 2018 in U.S. District Court by a New York law professor and the Center for Justice.
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It argues that all students should have access to an education that prepares them to participate in their civic duties — whether that involves the right to free speech or the right to vote or to sit on a jury.  
The suit, believed to be the first of its kind in the United States, named as defendants then-Gov. Gina Raimondo, the state Department of Education, the leaders of the General Assembly and others. 
Wood said the appellate court ruling “sets the standard for public education far too low.  We are arguing that they have a constitutional right to participate in a democracy as adults. This decision endangers our nation’s system of governance due to the students’ lack of a civics education.” 
The appellate court, like the U.S. District Court before it, found that a student’s right to an education is violated only when there is a complete denial of any sort of education, such as access to basic literacy skills.  
“Thus, as the district court aptly determined, the right to participate in a functioning democracy is ‘not wholly inaccessible without civics education,’” the appellate court wrote. “We also take judicial notice of relevant Rhode Island law, which has, since 2007, required at least some civics education in its schools, even if it is not as comprehensive as the framework appellants desire.“ 
In 2021, the General Assembly required public schools to provide civics education as part of the history and social studies curriculum, the First District court wrote. That legislation also requires civics proficiency beginning in the 2022-23 academic year. 
“The complaint here fails to allege a total deprivation of a minimally adequate education,” the appellate court found. “For these reasons, we affirm the district court’s conclusion that the students have not plausibly alleged the deprivation of a fundamental right.”
But the First District Court did acknowledge the good intentions of the students in calling for more robust involvement in civic life.   
“We conclude by echoing the district court’s observations in dismissing this case, that the students have called attention to critical issues of declining civic engagement and inadequate preparation for participation in civic life at a time when many are concerned about the future of American democracy,” the court found. “Nevertheless, the weight of precedent stands in the students’ way here, and they have not stated any viable claim for relief. We affirm the judgment of the district court.” 
Linda Borg covers education for the Journal.

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