Child-centered education funding

The 1999 legislature feels pressed to provide many millions of dollars to build additional classrooms for the huge numbers of new students projected in our state school system. The rationale given for breaking I-601 is primarily centered around the need for new or retrofitted classrooms and additional teachers.

Table 1: What education costs per student "The K-12 forecast includes K-12, private and home-based school enrollment, summer school enrollment, Running Start, and UW Transition Program enrollment components." — Economic Forecast Council, Nov. 12, 1998 The Dollars—Income $10,173,046,000 - all funds (state & federal) $288,000,000 - capital costs + $1,379,000,000 - average levy receipts $11,840,046,000 - Total proposed K-12 budget for 1999-2001 biennium Student Enrollment (averaged from OSPI projections for 1998-2001) 950,105 - OSPI K-12 enrollment projections - 58,907 - estimate of the # of unreimbursed home and private school students 891,198 - total K-12 public school students The Dollars—Expenditures $11,840,046,000 - total proposed K-12 budget ÷ 891,198 - students $13,286 - per student per biennium (or $6,643 per year per student)

So how many new students will be flooding across the schoolhouse thresholds during the next four years? Nine hundred eighteen (918) new students is the projection from the Caseload Forecast Council...unless you go by the governor’s 2020 Commission numbers, in which case the number is between 60,000 and 100,000 additional learners.

Of course, the governor’s commission includes K-16 (at a minimum), whereas the 918 number is K-12. And since the student population increases are not uniform across the state, some districts needed new classrooms yesterday, while others could rent out space for a mini-mall for years to come.

The fact is, Washington state in general does not have a rapidly growing student population. But exploding populations in some geographical regions do necessitate new schools. This is neither new nor unusual. And it’s true that some aging schools need modernization. But this fact isn’t new either.

If it is really more money we need to help our education system, and this is a point we would argue, here are some big-ticket alternatives to further increasing the tax burden on citizens of this state:

Contract out support services (maintenance, food, buses, computer and clerical services, etc.). Union officials hate it, but a savings of up to 16 percent can be realized and can be plowed back into the classroom (Data compiled from the Reason Foundation on actual and potential savings achieved by other states).

Remove the prevailing wage requirements from school construction. Savings for this alone will equal 25 percent, or a projected $72 million for the next biennium.

Make better use of distance learning and schools without walls, particularly for students at either extreme end of the academic ladder. Borrow a technique from homeschoolers who utilize education experts via video and interactive computer to learn specific subject matters. Bilingual education instruction would be much more efficient and cost-effective via interactive distance learning.

Enhance Running Start which could allow highly capable students to graduate early. Approximately $4,000 per year can be saved for each early graduation. Thirteen students graduating early would pay for one experienced teacher. (The state of Minnesota calculates early graduation saves approximately three-fourths the annual student cost).

Approve charter schools which have less costly operational and staffing costs.

Exempt school construction from as many building codes and GMA requirements as possible without jeopardizing clear-cut health and safety standards.

Figure out where the current K-12 dollars go and cut wasteful spending. It’s a guarantee: Waste exists in a budget that is so big and baffling that those in authority cannot identify how, where, and for what purpose each dollar is spent.

If the governor’s budget is adopted, it will cost the taxpayers of Washington state $6,643 per year to educate one student. On average, barely one-half that amount makes it to a student’s classroom. Isn’t it past time to tie more education dollars directly to students and the classroom and school where they attend?

Prepared by Lynn Harsh, Senior Research Analyst, Contact (360) 956-3482 or effwa@effwa.org

Evergreen Freedom Foundation P.O. Box 552, Olympia, WA 98507 Phone: (360) 956-3482, Fax: (360) 352-1874 Email: effwa@effwa.org