MALDEF

SCHOOL FUNDING TRIAL BEGINS AGAINST STATE OF COLORADO

MALDEF seeks equality for at-risk and English Language Learner Students

DENVER, CO – On Friday, July 29, 2011, MALDEF will hold a press conference in front of the Colorado Department of Education to announce that the trial in Lobato v. Colorado will begin on Monday, August 1, 2011, one year and a half after MALDEF filed legal papers in the lawsuit.

The Lobato lawsuit was originally filed in Denver County District Court in 2005 by parents and school districts arguing that the State of Colorado had failed to adequately fund their education. MALDEF intervened in February 2010, focusing on the irrational and inadequate funding for at-risk students and English Language Learner students. MALDEF also seeks a declaration that funding for facilities in property-poor school districts is insufficient and that communities have been stripped of local control. This is the first statewide school adequacy lawsuit to be tried in Colorado.

WHAT:
Press Conference on Lobato v. Colorado

WHO:
David Hinojosa, Southwest Regional Counsel, MALDEF
Marisa Bono, Staff Attorney, MALDEF
Kathy Gebhardt, Co-Founder and Attorney, Children's Voices, Inc., Attorney for Lobato Plaintiffs

WHEN:
Friday, July 29, 2011 10:30AM MDT

WHERE:
Colorado Department of Education
201 East Colfax Avenue
Denver, CO 80203

Founded in 1968, MALDEF is the nation's leading Latino legal civil rights organization. Often described as the "law firm of the Latino community," MALDEF promotes social change through advocacy, communications, community education and litigation in the areas of education, employment, immigrant rights and political access. For more information on MALDEF, please visit: www.maldef.org .

For all media inquiries, please contact Laura Rodriguez.