Notable Quotable
“When School A is spending $12K per pupil and School B located a few blocks down the road is spending double that amount, the local newspaper headlines won’t be the only thing that’s jarring. This data will also raise uneasy questions about how teachers are distributed across schools because 80 percent of school expenditures are personnel-related.”—Dale Chu, Thomas B. Fordham Institute
Student-Based Budgeting in the News
Political Challenges Ahead with ESSA’s Financial Transparency Requirements
Many states will report actual school-by-school spending for the first time, which could ignite controversy or be largely ignored.
Weighted-Student Funding Lessons
Equity and school-level flexibility are key reasons for adopting weighted-student funding, with formulas varying substantially among districts.
Texas Overhauls Education Finance System
The final bill appears to add about $6.5 billion for public education and $5.1 billion for property tax relief, with substantial changes to how dollars are allocated.
Research and Resources Spotlight
Title I Study Reveals Major Flaws in Federal Education Funding
The U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics found that allocations per formula-eligible child varied substantially across states.
Study: Wisconsin Schools of Choice are Cost-Effective
Private and independent charter schools tend to be more cost-effective than district-run public schools in the state overall and for the vast majority of individual cities, according to a recently released study by Corey DeAngelis.
Video: Reason’s Aaron Smith Discusses North Carolina School Finance Reform
North Carolina’s funding system is antiquated and restricts local decision-making, says Smith.
Follow School Finance Groups and Experts on Twitter
Education Research Strategies @ERStrategies
Center on Reinventing Public Education @CRPE_UW
Afton Partners @aftonpartners
Edunomics Lab @EdunomicsLab
EdBuild @EdBuild
Reason Foundation @AaronGarthSmith
Allovue @AllovueBalance