Education Funding

With IL legislators deliberating on alternative means of funding public education, I was struck by this recent article in the New York Times Magazine.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/12/education/12middle.html?ex=1179633600&en=b11db2c011747c17&ei=5070&emc=eta1

This article is about an East Coast public middle school that could serve as a model for educating youngsters in this difficult transition period. The school's creative curriculum, along with its intentional approach to social and emotional learning, were interesting.

What was striking, though, was the almost $25,000 per pupil the school has to spend. Because I just finished budget for my school for next year, I couldn't help but note that amount is over three times the amount we spend per pupil in Chicago (almost $7K per pupil for high school, and even less for grades K-8).

I know money is not the only factor in effectively educating students, but it certainly does make a difference. When administrators have to feverishly seek grants (additional funding) to provide
basics (like extra staff to tutor students who struggle severely or an assistant principal when the school is small or a counselor for every grade or a social worker or money for the social-emotional programs this East Coast school has), it is frustrating to see other schools for whom these matters are not an issue. When I talk to principal friends who are more than capable and willing to provide ongoing, quality staff development, but who lack the funding to do so, I almost want to cry because the bottom line is students being shortchanged on their education -- on their future.

I firmly believe students from low-income areas can achieve at the highest levels when certain conditions are set by the adults around them: high expectations, laser-like focus on learning, ongoing use of data, commitment to teacher development, and so on. Doing so requires creativity with use of finances, dogged pursuit of outside resources, and so on. For instance, in order for my school to run as it should, I have three additional streams of revenue outside the city's per pupil spending: two grants and the financial support of our non-profit operator.

However, educating poor students always will be an uphill battle until the issue of funding is settled in this country -- until there is equity in spending per pupil.