School Finance - Introduction

Introduction to School Finance

Part 1 – School finance history.

1.       1845 – Texas became a state and the new constitution began the complexity of funding a free and appropriate education. The difficulty of having adequate funds for all schools in Texas has been the center of debate in school finance and considered “unconstitutional” in several court cases.

2.       1949 – Gilmer-Aiken Laws changed the funding and operation of state schools. The State Board of Education was founded, teacher salaries were increased, and formal school year were established from these laws. Also, the organization of state supplementing local taxes to adequately find public school.

3.        Edgewood v Kirby lawsuit that ended up with the Texas Supreme Court decision leading to the 1993 – “Robin Hood Plan” where property wealthy districts distribute their revenue based on one of five methods. This plan came from after a series of lawsuits beginning in 1984.

Part 2 – Issues impacting the state formula

1. Local property tax base varies greatly across the state. Thus, having a fair formula is impossible without the development of the “Robin Hood” plan.

2.        Foundation School Program (FSP – This is how Texas distributes its funding to school districts. The formulas and calculations in Tier 1 and Tier 2 along with the system of using the Weighted Average Daily Attendance (WADA) impacts the funding of a district and the allotment amount of the different special programs. District must continuously work on student attendance and most important, the students must be coded correctly to receive all allotment funds.

3.      Inflation: The current system of funding uses formulas created many years ago and has not adjusted to keep pace with the increasing costs and needed salary increases.

Part 3 – Equality, Equity, and Adequacy

Equality - Every student has the same access to the same type of basic educational program, all students benefit. Example: funding for meeting the needs of educating a student in the core subject and facilities suitable to the student’s academic need. (Texas Education Code Chapter 42)

Equity – fair and responds to the needs of the individual. Example: special education funding and bilingual education.

Adequacy – sufficient amount of funds for students to achieve. Example: minimum teacher salaries and textbook funding

Part 4 - Comparing Two District Improvement Plans

At first I found Austin’s plan difficult to understand and follow, but upon closer review I discovered Austin’s plan begins with a plan and is followed throughout the district. I do believe Austin’s plan is lacking in following the funding for their goals and compensatory education. I would like to continue with Woodville’s format and include behind each goal the update/detail information such as Austin.