ABSTRACT
These penetrating words of Chief Justice Earl Warren, penned approximately 60 years ago as the Supreme Court formally desegregated the nation’s schools, capture the undeniably critical role of education in all aspects of children’s lives. Indeed, George Washington, whom elementary school children learn to revere as the “father of our country,” had a passionate commitment to promoting education as a fundamental and essential pillar to individual and national welfare. He and other founding fathers extolled education as foundational for instilling children with the proper values, knowledge, and skills to become good citizens.2
