Notable Quotable
“The rising cost of benefits poses problems for educators and legislators alike. For teachers, higher benefit costs do not necessarily mean they’re receiving more valuable pensions or more generous health care. It is instead more likely that the state is spending more to pay down debts. Worse still, growing benefit costs make salary increases far less likely because states, by and large, are not increasing their K-12 investments.” Max Marchitello, Bellwether Education Partners
Student-Based Budgeting in the News
Guam Considering Funding Changes
The legislation would establish a uniform per-pupil funding formula that is weighted for student needs.
Texas Education Commissioner: Pay Effective Teachers More
Education Commissioner Mike Morath recommended that Texas move to a system that allows districts to use a tiered pay plan, which pays more to high-performing teachers.
Pennsylvania School Finance Lawsuit Clears Hurdle
The plaintiffs argue that the state’s new formula, which only applies to a small fraction of education dollars, hasn’t addressed funding gaps.
Arizona’s Roosevelt School District Was the Only District to Apply for Federal Weighted Student Funding Pilot for 2019
Arizona’s Roosevelt School District #66 has applied to the pilot for the 2019-20 school year. In addition, Puerto Rico is the only island-wide school district that has been approved for the federal weighted student pilot.
Commentary: Revisiting New Orleans Charter School Success as Local School Board Takes Control
Funding decisions could become more politicized under reunification and OPSB should stay the course in employing student-based allocation.
Research & Resources Spotlight
Study: Benefits Take Larger Bite Out of District K-12 Education Budgets
Benefits spending is increasing much faster than K-12 spending overall and eating up a rising share of district budgets.
The Equity Problem in Teacher Pensions
A study by Edunomics Lab finds that teachers in high minority schools accrue less annual publicly funded pension wealth than teachers in low minority schools, calling into question whether retirement benefits distribute education dollars equitably.
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