COUNCIL FOR BETTER EDUCATION
CHRONOLOGY OF EVENTS
DATE	EVENT        (Key events in bold)	
4/12/84	Arnold Guess invites selected superintendents (poorest third of the
school districts in the state) to meet regarding Kentucky's school 
finance system.
	
5/4/84	Twenty-eight school districts are represented.
Presentations are made to the group by Arnold Guess, James Melton, 
David Alexander, Richard Salmon and Alex Eversole.
Each Superintendent agrees to ask their local Board of Education for 
$.50 per child in Average Daily Attendance to cover the expenses of 
filing suit.  Guess and Melton agree to handle communications for the 
organization through the Kentucky School Boards Association.
Council Bylaws were drafted.              	
5/14/84	Articles of Incorporation filed for the Council for Better Education by 
its officers.
Frank Hatfield, President.
Steve Towler, Vice President.
Jack Moreland, Secretary/Treasurer.      	
5/25/84	Frank Hatfield meets with Senator Mike Maloney.	
5/30/84	Hatfield meets with attorney Bert Combs.	
6/8/84	Superintendent Alice McDonald tells the Louisville Times that she will 
sue if the Council uses school funds.
Senator Mike Maloney says a suit will alienate legislators "who have 
been working to improve the situation."
	
6/11/84	Frank Hatfield meets with Kentrucky Education Association President, 
Executive Secretary and Attorney.
	
6/17/84	Courier-Journal editorial congratulates Guess, Melton and the Council 
for their efforts. The editorial supports the Council suit to answer the 
equity question "once and for all."
	
6/19/84	The Council for Better Education sends a message to the General 
Assembly membership assuring that the proposed suit intends no malice.

6/25/84	

Frank Hatfield, Alex Eversole and Jack Moreland invited by Senator 
Nelson Allen to meet with the Interim Joint Committee on Education to 
discuss the proposed suit.
	
7/27/84	Council for Better Education position paper drafted.
The Council identifies parents willing to sue on behalf of their children.
	
8/8/84 	Tony Collins meets with McDonald.  He indicates McDonald is willing 
to begin positive dialogue.
	
9/4/84	Council steering committee meets in Louisville.
Presentations made by Combs, Kern Alexander and attorney Ted Lavit.
Combs and Lavit encourage the suit and discuss the best jurisdiction.
Steering Committee to begin interviewing legal firms to prepare the case.
The steering committee decided to continue to act for the Council until 
all districts desiring to join the Council had the opportunity to do so.  At 
that time a board of directors would be selected from the membership.
	
10/3/84	Guess and steering committee members meet with Combs. 
Wyatt, Tarrant and Combs selected to represent the Council along with 
Professor Tom Lewis and Edward Prichard.
	
10/12/84 	Kentucky Post editorial calls for school funds to be distributed "so that 
all...children have an equal educational opportunity." 
 	
10/15/84	The Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence holds it’s first statewide 
Town Forum, broadcast on KET.  The program is introduced by Governor 
Martha Layne Collins, former Governor Bert Combs, Prichard Committee
Executive Director Bob Sexton and state Superintendent Alice McDonald.
	
11/15/84	Bert Combs meets with the Council.	
12/3/84	Council for Better Education steering committee meets with Combs. 
Kern Alexander and Tom Lewis to review progress to date.
Tewnty-five previously uncommitted Superintendents declare they will 
seek permission from their boards to participate in the suit.
Some legislators threaten not to vote any additional money to education 
if a suit is pending.
	
12/12/84	Hatfield requests an Attorney General's opinion on the expenditure of 
school funds for the suit.
	
1/27/85	Steering Committee conducts discussion at Kentucky School Board 
Association annual meeting in Louisville.
	
2/26/85	Combs and Guess meet with Attorney General David Armstrong.	
3/10/85	Ashland Daily Independent reports that the Council has commitments 
from sixty-one districts to join suit.
Kentucky Education Association decides to take no position on the 
Council's proposed suit.
	
5/7/85	Kern Alexander and Ted Lavit complete drafting of the complaint.	
5/8/85	Council for Better Education meets in Frankfort.
Progress reports from Combs, Lewis, Alexander, and Lavit.
Bylaws were adopted.  Eleven-member board of directors elected.
Legal complaint being developed - considering state and federal 
jurisdictions.
	
5/14/85 	Ted Lavit prepares Articles of Incorporation and Tax Exempt 
Status papers.
	
5/24/85	Dayton Independent School District becomes the first to pay their dues 
and complete its membership in the Council for Better Education.
	
5/28/85	Alexander meets with potential plaintiffs in several southeastern counties.	

5/30/85	
Jackson Independent joins Council.
Council Board of Directors meets in Lexington.
Bylaws ratified and officers elected.	
5/31/85	Barbourville and Fulton Independent join Council.	
6/1/85	Lavit amends minor error in Articles of Incorporation to change name 
from "Counsel" to "Council."
	
6/5/85	East Bernstadt, Pineville and Silver Grove Independents join the Council.	
6/6/85	Eminence Independent joins Council.	
6/17/85	Butler County, Harlan, Berea, Pendleton County, Russellville, Ludlow, 
Bell County, Todd County, Hickman County, Monroe County, Owen 
County, Williamsburg, Hardin County, Metcalfe County, McCreary 
County, Rowan County, Grant County, Bracken County, Augusta, 
Middlesboro, Crittenden County and Fleming County join Council.
	
6/19/85	Scott County and Bullitt County join Council.
Signed affidavits from plaintiff parents are sent to Dawahare.	
6/20/85	Harrison County joins Council.	
6/21/85	Wayne County, Warren County and Dawson Springs Independent join 
Council.
	
6/25/85	Trimble County joins Council.	
6/25/85	Jenkins Independent and Breathitt County join Council.	
7/1/85	Fulton County joins Council.
	
7/2/85	Attorney General opines in OAG 85-100 "...that a local board of education may expend school funds to support litigation efforts 
relating to the equity of distribution of financial resources..."
	
7/8/85	Special Session of the legislature begins.  
Spencer County joins Council.
	
7/11/85	Anderson County joins Council.
Warren County withdraws from Council, under pressure, asks for (but 
does not receive) refund of dues. Gover resigns board of directors.
	
7/15/85	McClean County joins Council.	
7/24/85	Boyd County, Elliott County, Lee County, Logan County and Mason 
County join Council.
	
7/30/85	Greenup County joins Council.
	
8/12/85	Council board of directors meets in Lexington.
Discussion of Governor's Education Improvement Program takes place.
	
8/23/85	Lawrence County joins Council.	
8/28/85	Lavit urges Hatfield to ignore legislative promises of  $60 million in 
power equalization and file the suit.
	
9/5/85	Jack Moreland reports that the suit is ready for filing.
	
9/16/85	Ballard County joins Council.
Council membership is surveyed for a decision whether to file suit 
immediately or to wait for the 1986 Regular Session.  
         	
10/17/85	Courier-Journal quotes State Representative Joe Clarke saying "it's 
unlikely that the legislature will increase money for power equalization."  
Over the 1984-85 biennium $39 million were allocated.
	
10/21/85	Letcher County joins Council.	
11/4/85	Wolfe County joins Council.	
11/8/85	Board of Directors meets to discuss weak response to the member 
survey, whether to proceed with suit, or wait.  Survey says wait.  Board 
adds their own votes and decides to proceed.
	
11/19/85	Council issues two statements of purpose.	
11/20/85	Council for Better Education, et al. v. Martha Layne Collins, Governor, 
et al.; Civil Action No. 85-CI-1759 is filed in Franklin Circuit Court 
and assigned to Judge Ray Corns. 
	
11/22/85	Courier-Journal editorial supports the filing of the suit.
	
11/26/85	Rockcastle County letter indicated their inability to pay their dues.  Their 
offer to resign is rejected by the Council.
	
12/3/85	Monticello Independent and Allen County join Council.	
12/6/85	Clay County joins Council.	
12/17/85	Covington Independent and Edmonson County join Council.	
1/2/86	Hart County and Leslie County join Council.	
1/17/86	SB 102, reported out of the Senate, would disallow the expenditure of 
local, state, or federal funds to support litigation that would challenge 
the allocation of those funds.  
	
1/17/86	A State Journal opinion supports the Council suit as a means to settle 
the equity issue.
	
1/27/86	Moreland memo urges superintendents to rally against Senate Bill 102.	
1/30/86 		Kentucky Department of Education attorney, Gary Bale, files answer to 
the Complaint on behalf of Alice McDonald.
	
2/19/86	Council Executive Directors meet in Lexington. 
Lavit and attorney Debra Dawahare report that the suit has been filed in 
Franklin County Circuit Court and Judge Ray Corns was assigned to the 
case.  
Combs reports that SB 102 was in committee and stressed the 
importance of keeping it there.
Richard Salmon replaces Kern Alexander as consultant at the rate of 
$250 per day.  $17,023.77 reported on hand.
	
2/26/86	Letter from Lavit to Roger Noe requests that SB 102 should be prevented 
from coming out of committee.
	
3/12/86	Towler resigns Vice Chairmanship of Council under political pressure.
	
4/18/86	Combs letter to Corns requesting pretrial conference to settle issues 
related to whether the plaintiffs have standing to maintain the action.
Scent files Requests for Admissions to certain facts for the defense.
	
6/2/86	Corns rules, in Pre-Trial Conference, that the 13 members of the 
Kentucky Board of Education were indispensable parties in the suit, but 
not all 138 members of the General Assembly.  Plaintiffs were given 
until June 12, 1986 to file an amended complaint naming the state board.  
	
6/27/86	Defendant's motion for summary judgment is overruled by Judge Corns.	
9/26/86 	Guess meets with Salmon, Alexander and Dawahare to plan for depositions.	
12/2/86	Hatfield presents to Combs a suggested list of Superintendents to testify 
for the Council.
Hatfield recommends using the new legislation on deficient school districts 
and the Management Assistance Program as supportive of the arguments 
for equity.
	
4/4/87	Corns receives depositions in Council v. Collins.
	
5/25/87	Richard Salmon deposition taken.
	
5/26/87 	Superintendents from Wolfe County, Jenkins and Ft. Thomas agree to 
provide exhibits for the court	
6/10/87	Hatfield deposition taken.	
6/30/87	Hatfield resigns Superintendency and Council chairmanship.	
7/30/87	Council meets in Louisville.
Lavit presents update on the lawsuit.
Moreland elected President
Binion elected Vice President, Martin Carr elected Secretary/Treasurer.	
	
8/4/87	Trial Begins
	
9/22/87	Alexander, Guess and John Brock testimony presented.
	
3/9/88	Dawahare files Plaintiff's Reply Brief.
	
3/28/88	Council enters a Motion to Substitute.
Wallace Wilkinson for Collins, Governor.
John Brock for Alice McDonald, Superintendent of Public Instruction.
Meade for Francis Jones Mills, State Treasurer.
John “Eck” Rose for Joe Prather, President Pro Tem of the Senate.
Clay Parks for James Ratliff, Chairman, Kentucky Board of Education.
Lila Bellando for Ann Bardwell, Vice chair. Kentucky Board of 
Education.  New Members of the Kentucky Board of Education- Patti 
Acquisto, James Figley, Jane Joplin-Evans, Francis Hamilton, Kenneth 
James, James Ratcliffe and Gary Cox. 
Corns postpones oral arguments from April 5 until April 18 to provide 
new defendants preparation time.
	
4/18/88	Corns hears final oral arguments, nearly twenty-nine months after 
the filing of the suit. 
Prichard Committee files amicus curiae brief.
Department of Education, now under the leadership of John Brock, 
withdraws their defense in support of the plaintiffs.   
Defense attorney William Scent argues that the legislature has done much 
to attack the inequities, problem lies with poor tax collection and 
mismanagement.
	
5/31/88	Corn's Decision declares Kentucky system of school finance 
unconstitutional.  Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law and Findings.
Corns names Select Committee.
Kern Alexander named Chair.
Members include John Brock, James Melton, Larry Forgy and Sylvia 
Watson.	
		
6/16/88	Alexander announces Select Committee Public Hearings.
	
7/5/88	Select Committee begins Hearings in Covington.
	
7/6/88	Council meets in Lexington.
Moreland read testimony that was presented to the Select Committee the 
day before.
Moreland announced the likelihood that all sixty-six districts would be 
audited by State Auditor Bob Babbage's office.                
Alexander reported on the case and support from Governor Wallace 
Wilkinson.  Combs suggested that the Council support Wilkinson's 
benchmark school concept as an act of "good faith" in return for his 
support of the suit.  Council approved a motion to that effect. 
Moreland to poll other districts to assess the desire to join since the 
suit.  Committee named to draft funding plan for Judge Corns, includes 
Superintendents Alex Eversole, Jim Young, Steve Towler and Gene 
Binion.  New members of Council executive committee were named to 
replace retired members including Dennis Lacy, Steve Towler, Charles 
Brown, Clarence Bates, Alex Eversole, John Ray, Earl Reed, Ken Bland, 
Jim Young and Jack Herlihy.
New Officers elected - Moreland, Pres.; Gene Binion, VP; Jack Herlihy, 
Sec/Treas.
Select Committee Hearing in Frankfort.
	
7/11/88 	Select Committee Hearing in London.
	
7/12/88 	Select Committee Hearing in Madisonville.
	
7/13/88 	Select Committee Hearing in Louisville.
	
8/8/88	Interim Joint Committee public hearing in Somerset.
	
8/17/88	Council meets in Lexington.
Balance in treasury = $18,270.
Steve Towler reports that the Governor and Superintendent of Public 
Instruction decided not to appeal Corns decision.
Senate President Eck Rose and Speaker of the House Don Blandford to 
appeal. 
Council members plan to attend each of the regional Interim Joint 
Committee hearings.
Moreland reports thirty-one more districts potentially interested in 
joining Council.  
Council sends info to districts with a Nov 1, 1988 deadline.
Education Secretary Jack Foster addresses group on the Governor's 
program.  
Council approves funding proposal for presentation to Corns.
	
9/14/88	Lewis County and Bath County join Council.
	
9/15/88	Interim Joint Committee Public Hearing in Winchester and Salyersville.
	
9/16/88	Interim Joint Committee Public Hearing in Hindman.
	
9/20/88		Report of Select Committee submitted to Judge Ray Corns.  Final order 
issued.
	
10/3/88	Robertson County, Morgan County and Laurel County join Council.
	
10/14/88	Moreland called to Frankfort to secure reinstatement of Domestic 
Corporation Charter for the Council for Better Education.
	
10/14/88	Corns issued Supplemental Findings – Final Judgment.
	
10/19/88	Frankfort Independent joins Council.
	
10/20/88	Interim Joint Committee Public Hearing in Henderson County and 
Mayfield.
	
10/21/88	Russell County joins Council.
Interim Joint Committee Public Hearing in Russellville.
	
10/24/88	Lyon County joins Council.
	
10/25/88	Bellevue Independent joins Council.
	
11/17/88	Interim Joint Committee Public Hearing in Mt. Vernon and Columbia.
	
11/18/88	Interim Joint Committee Public Hearing in Elizabethtown and Anchorage.
	
Winter, 
1988	Larry Forgy, a member of Corns’s Committee, addresses the Kentucky 
Association of School Superintendents on the court decision.  Forgy 
calls for unified support of the ruling on political and legal grounds.
	
12/7/88	Oral Arguments taken before the Kentucky Supreme Court.
	
6/8/89	Kentucky Supreme Court Rules in favor of the Council for Better 
Education affirming and expanding Judge Corn’s decision.
Wilkinson holds press conference to pledge that he will comply with the 
court order.
	
7/17/89	Interim Joint Committee on Education completes its report.
	
9/20/89	Council meets in Frankfort.
Aspects of Supreme Court ruling presented by Combs, Forgy, Alexander, 
Melton, Hatfield and Eversole.
Total cost of the suit to date = $82,062.99.
$4,500 left on hand after expenses.
Kern Alexander employed to work with committee to draft a position 
paper.
	
12/7/89	Courier-Journal reports Council's dissatisfaction with the direction taken 
by the various task forces and their lack of focus on the equity question.
	
12/13/89	New position paper distributed to all school superintendents.
	
12/15/89	Council meets in Frankfort.
Clarification of judicial guidelines prepared by Alexander is endorsed 
and sent to the press, the General Assembly, and Task Force.
New Council assessment of $.25 per child in ADA is made.
	
1/4/90	Rep. John Harper et al. submits HJR 25, which would refund Council 
expenses to each member district.
	
1/10/90	Oldham County, Floyd County, Cumberland County, Williamstown 
Independent, Science Hill Independent, Washington County and 
Maysville Independent join Council.
	
1/16/90	Carroll County, Corbin Independent and Boyle County join Council.
	
1/17/90	Ft. Thomas Independent joins Council.
	
1/18/90	Lincoln County, Webster County and Menifee County join Council.
	
1/19/90	Somerset Independent, Trimble County and Henry County join Council.
	
1/22/90	Letters to Moreland from Smitty Taylor (Governor’s staff) indicated 
Task Force will not forget the equity concerns raised in the Supreme 
Court Decision.
Southgate Independent and Fulton County join Council.
	
1/24/90	Combs addresses the Subcommittee on Elementary, Secondary Education 
in Washington in support of the Hawkins "Fair Chance Act." 
Trigg County joins Council.
	
1/25/90	Jessamine County and Johnson County join Council.
	
1/26/90	Letter from David McAnelly (Governor's Chief of Staff) says Task Force 
has not deviated from equity or adequacy principles.
Harlan County joins Council.
	
2/7/90	Letter from Foster says Governor's budget will address equity and adequacy.	
		
2/8/90	Raceland Independent and Rockcastle County join Council.
	
2/9/90	Magoffin County joins Council.
	
2/12/90	Union County joins Council.	
2/15/90	Garrard County joins Council.
	
2/16/90	Knox County joins Council.
	
2/22/90	Campbell County, Nelson County, Fairview Independent and Harrodsburg 
Independent join Council.
	
2/27/90	Simpson County and Beechwood Independent join Council.
	
3/26/90	Clinton County joins Council.
	
4/11/90	Governor Wilkinson signs Education Reform Act.