Seattle Times Olympia bureau
OLYMPIA - An online learning coalition has filed a lawsuit against the state, claiming that budget cuts have hit alternative-education programs harder than traditional schools, violating the state constitution.
Members of the Washington Families for Online Learning filed the lawsuit in King County Superior Court this week.
It alleges that lawmakers last year cut Alternative Learning Experience (ALE) programs, which includes K-12 online education offered by dozens of school districts, an average 15 percent more than traditional schools.
They said a state Supreme Court decision issued last month reinforced their decision to sue. The court ruled that the state is failing to meet its constitutional duty to provide a basic education to all the state's children.
"We were singled out because all public schools and districts took the same cut, but they targeted students in ALE programs, like online schools [by cutting more]," said Gigi Talcott, coordinator for Washington Families for Online Learning and a former state representative.
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