The education of the State's 3 million children and billions of taxpayers dollars are at stake. With the Hudson as their guide, this unprecedented journey will take supporters from the busy streets of New York City, into the small cities and historic towns of Westchester, Putnam and Orange counties, through the small towns and back roads of New York State's open country, and finally, right up to the steps of the Court of Appeals in Albany.

In 1993, CFE first brought suit against New York State on behalf of hundreds of thousands of children who were denied their constitutional rights to the opportunity for a "sound, basic education". In January 2001, a landmark decision by Justice Leland DeGrasse ruled that the current school funding formula is "inequitable and unconstitutional," and violated the State Constitution. Then, in a stunning reversal in June 2002, the intermediate appeals court overruled the trial court's decision, accepting Governor Pataki's lawyers' shocking assertion that an 8th grade level education was enough to satisfy constitutional requirements.

The Court of Appeals has scheduled oral arguments for May 8, at which CFE will:

• Urge the Court to ensure that every child in New York State is guaranteed an adequate high school education.
• Attack the pernicious premise of the Appellate Division decision that the failures of "at-risk" students arise from the poverty and race of students rather than a lack of adequate resources.
• Ask for fundamental reforms of the funding system.