In the coming months, it is likely that there will be a lot of talk about a new way schools will be funded, and the term ‘student weighted funding’ is likely to be thrown around a lot.
To clarify, student-weighted funding is the most utilized form of school funding in the nation.
Currently, Alabama is one of only about four states left that still use a ‘foundation program’, which is essentially a ‘one-size-fits-all’ way of funding schools. These foundation formulas made sense in a time when the number of students in a school had to be hand-tallied, postmarked, and mailed in to Montgomery.
We can do a bit better now, which means we can be a lot more targeted and accurate with how we fund our schools and kids. Student-weighted funding was developed to fund students based on their specific needs. For example, all students get a certain ‘baseline’ amount of funding, but those with extra needs—such as special education—are given a bit more to cover the extra costs required.
In short, it is less about making the school funding ‘pie’ bigger, but more about making sure the pieces are cut up to each child’s level of need. This way, less of the pie ends up being wasted.
This might all sound well and good, but a lot of folks are probably wondering if the juice is worth the squeeze. I teach school finance at Auburn University, and recently wrote a brief on what the research says about student weighted
funding—not just for parents, but for citizens and schools as well.
What parents need to know
The clear headline is that student weighted funding distributes extra funds to students to may need more resources or support. However, the cumulative effect is that this type of funding improves the general education classroom. Schools may be able to afford additional aides, materials, and personnel to support student needs—which means teachers tend to be better able to manage and support the general classroom environment and give more individualized attention to each student.
This also ensures the money gets to where it was intended. Student weighted funding offers categorized funds, meaning that support for programs doesn’t spill over into money meant for core instruction.
Finally, it is well documented that the type of targeted money being spent with accords with better learning—not just for student groups with additional weights—but for general students as well.
What the community needs to know
If you don’t have children in schools, it may be unclear why a weighted formula is beneficial. However, modernizing the formula connects with a better-funded school system, which has repeatedly shown to attract businesses and raise property values. (For example, past research has found that every additional dollar spent on education resulted
in a $20 increase in local real estate values. Improved spending accords with an improved workforce,
which is a long-term investment in everyone’s prosperity.
Moreover, a common question is, will this increase my taxes? While the details are still up in the air, lawmakers have stated plainly they will not, and I’m willing to bet they’ll keep their promise.. As noted in recent the legislative hearings, all of the projected changes are within the current educational spending account.
What schools need to know
Although more needs-based school funding sounds nice, undoubtedly any change may make some school leaders nervous. However, given the current ‘hold harmless’ provision in this proposal, no school would receive less funding.
Additionally, schools who currently must apply for additional aid through grant programs would now automatically be allocated resources, reducing the administrative overhead for many schools. And no, a weighted funding formula doesn’t determine teacher’s salaries—those are still set by the state.
While the ultimate outcomes of any school funding mechanism will be determined by the details, the research has been clear that weighted school funding tends to have a lot more benefits. And as I recall, those ‘one-size-fits-all’ shirts fit exactly zero people. Let’s not use the same model with our kids and community’s future.
Pendola is an associate professor of educational leadership at Auburn University.