Issue Brief
Education Finance Reform
Background
Pennsylvania continues to have one of
the nation's most ineffective and unjust
statewide funding systems for elementary
and secondary education.
As a result of insufficient state
funding, public education in
Pennsylvania is very dependent on local
wealth, and the quality of educational
opportunity for children varies widely.
Like most other states, Pennsylvania has
adopted statewide student-learning
standards as part of their strategy for
creating more effective and positive
student outcomes. However, state
lawmakers have never determined how they
might structure a funding system that
helps schools achieve high academic
standards. Pennsylvania recently
performed a “costing-out study” to
obtain objective information on how to
fund public education so that all
students have a real opportunity to meet
the learning standards.
The results of the PA “costing-out
study” reveal that there is an average
funding gap across the state of $2,414
per student.
In many districts, however, that gap is
much greater, including Reading
($6,437), Upper Darby ($4,388),
Shenandoah Valley ($4,286) and Saint
Marys ($3,145). With these kinds of
funding shortfalls the youth of
Pennsylvania will not be prepared for
success in today’s world. (You may
contact the LAMPa office for specific
information about the funding gap for
specific school districts.)
Governor Rendell’s
2008-2009 basic education budget
proposal begins to close this gap, but
it does not do enough. Our school
system needs a new funding formula that
is adequate, equitable, accountable, and
efficient. The young people of
Pennsylvania cannot afford to wait while
this new formula is being developed. We
strongly urge the Governor and the
General Assembly to appropriate a
significant down-payment on a multi-year
phase in to bring the school funding
system to adequate and equitable levels.
ELCA Policy Base
(Our Calling in Education, 2007)
The belief that “all are created in
God’s image, all have equal worth and
dignity and should be treated
accordingly” stands behind our strong
support for our society’s expectation
that all young people have equitable
access to high quality schools. All
students are entitled to good schools;
and when they receive a high quality
education, society benefits…
“The ELCA’s commitment to equitable access
for all calls us to attend to the glaring
inequities in this country’s schooling. The
disturbing reality persists that too many
young people do not have access to good
public schools. This reality is most
pervasive in poor communities, especially
where poverty is intertwined with a history
of racism and discrimination… Schools where
a substantial majority of students live in
poverty consistently represent schools with
the fewest resources and some of the lowest
performances…
“We, of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in
America, therefore, commit ourselves to work
with others for public policies that boldly
and consistently push toward ensuring that
all students have equitable access to high
quality schools”
What You Can Do:
Visit, call and/or e-mail your State
Representative and State Senator to let them
know how important education finance reform
is to you. Specifically, you are encouraged
to ask them to:
·
Support a school funding formula that is
adequate, equitable, accountable, and
efficient.
·
Ask them to support the appropriation of a
significant down payment toward the
necessary and adequate funding levels.
·
Strengthen the Governor’s proposal by
ensuring that districts with few local
resources receive a greater share of state
funding.
Basing the state share of each district’s
funding only on local wealth will foster
equity in funding and resources.
·
Include a plan to address special education
students of all exceptionalities, including
gifted students.
The Costing-Out
Study identified the “adequate” amount of
funding needed to educate each child in
Pennsylvania, as well as the additional
amount needed for special education students
to receive the educational services they
need. This was not incorporated into the
Governor's "adequacy" figure.
·
Assure transition funding for all districts
of 2%.
As the state
moves to develop a funding formula that is
both adequate and equitable, it is essential
that districts receive transitional basic
education funding of at least 2 percent in
the 2008-2009 final state budget. School
districts are required under Act 1 to
develop preliminary budgets in December and
most have already conservatively estimated a
2 percent increase based on historical
precedent.
·
Apply additional accountability provisions
only to districts that fail to make adequate
yearly progress.
There must be
accountability for using public resources to
help students achieve the state’s academic
standards. The Governor’s proposal, however,
includes new accountability provisions that
are based on fiscal matters and not student
achievement.
April 2008
