Crane Elementary School District v. State of Arizona
Arizona Voucher Remedy 

Should public education carry a money-back guarantee?  On behalf of Arizona parents who believe it should, the Institute for Justice Arizona Chapter sought to protect the constitutional rights of poor children in the state to a basic education.

Clarence and Martha Patchin as well as Maria Cano are parents of Arizona schoolchildren who live in two of the seven public school districts that filed a lawsuit in which they admitted their inability to educate at-risk students.  Represented by IJ-AZ, the parents moved to intervene as plaintiffs in that suit.

The school districts, represented by Timothy M. Hogan of the Arizona Center for Law in the Public Interest, allege they have a right to more of the taxpayers’ money.  The families, represented by the Institute for Justice Arizona Chapter, argued more choice rather than a blank check is the answer to the children’s educational problems.  IJ-AZ sought an alternative remedy: providing every at-risk student in a failing school district exactly what the Arizona Constitution guarantees them—an equal opportunity for a basic education now—through a pro rata share of funding to pursue private education.

In April 2003, the Arizona Court of Appeals denied the parents’ right to participate in the school funding lawsuit.