Why some CA schools get three times more funding than others

from Carolyn JonesCalMatters

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At Pinedale Elementary in Fresno, there are almost no classroom aides, after-school teachers or behavior counselors. Literacy activities and workshops for parents are scarce. Excursions? Almost non-existent. The school survives with some of the lowest per-pupil costs in the state: $16,700 a year, nearly $5,000 below the state average.

Less than two miles away, it’s a different story at Kratt Elementary, which is in a different school district. Kratt has nearly identical demographics — mostly low-income and Latino — but gets $25,000 per student and has the amenities to show for it.

And a few hours west in the Bay Area, you’ll find Portola Valley Elementary, which spends nearly $46,000 per student per year. Offers music and art lessons, mental health counselors, small class sizes and state-of-the-art facilities.

The way school funding works in California, schools with high numbers of low-income, English-learning, homeless or foster students receive extra funding. Schools in wealthy areas receive less state funding, but make up for it through local property taxes and donations from parents. But the ones in the middle? They get a lot less money overall.

“When I saw what other schools were offering, I was like, what?” said Tanya Galeana-King, mother of three and parent volunteer at Pinedale. “As a parent, it’s really frustrating. I’ve heard about No Child Left Behind, but that’s like half the kids left behind.”

Low funding, low test scores

When California adopted the local control funding formula slightly more than a decade agothe idea was to bring equity to school funding and ensure that students with the most need receive more support. But rising costs, declining enrollment and inflation have led to wide disparities in school funding.

Those in the most affluent areas, such as Portola Valley, Menlo Park and other Silicon Valley enclaves, tend to be “core aid” districts, meaning they receive most of their funding through local property taxes. Parents pay the rest, often millions of dollars a year.

Non-basic aid school districts get their money through the state’s Local Control Funding Formula, which includes a basic grant plus extra money based on how many students are low-income, English language learners, homeless or in foster care. If more than 55% fall into that category, districts get even more money.

That’s why Fresno Unified, where Kratt Elementary is located, gets significantly more money than Pinedale Elementary, which is located in Clovis Unified. Clovis, where just under half the students are considered needy, receives little additional funding.

The effects of funding disparities are reflected in student test scores. In Pinedale, less than 30 percent of students met the state standard in English last year. Only 23.5% met the maths standard. Kratt students scored 5 to 10 percentage points higher on both tests. At Portola Valley, about 85% of students met the standard on both tests.

“I would say the problem is urgent,” said Michael Johnston, associate superintendent at Clovis Unified, noting the impact on student learning in schools with less funding. “For many, many years, these kids haven’t received the same resources, and it’s gotten worse every year. This is a group of students that we’re not treating fairly, and there needs to be a solution.”

Solutions in Sacramento

A bill in the state senate looking to solve the problem. Author of Sen. Dave CorteseDemocrat from San Jose, Senate Amendment 5 would create a reserve account funded by excess tax revenue in years of economic boom. After the state distributes its Proposition 98 money — California’s primary school funding vehicle — each year, it will give additional funding to schools that are not in essential aid districts. The money will come from the interest generated on the reserve account. As the account grows, the additional funding will grow.

“Over time, we think this bill can certainly stop the bleeding,” said Cortese, whose district includes a dozen primary relief districts. “If we don’t do anything, the problem is just going to get worse and worse.”

Cortese’s bill would amend the state constitution. If it passes the Legislature, the proposal would appear on the fall ballot.

To Governor Gavin Newsom revised budget is also trying to address the problem by providing nearly $1 billion more in grants for basic schools.

That’s good news for the California Association of School Administrators. While the money isn’t enough, it’s a start, said Naj Alikhan, a spokesman for the organization.

“(We) strongly support efforts to raise the base subsidy,” Alikhan said. “The LCFF base grant is the foundation of school funding in California, and increasing it is one of the most effective ways to provide schools with greater stability, flexibility and capacity to meet local needs.”

Another bill introduced by an MP David AlvarezChula Vista Democrat, will expand the school funding for students with high needsbut some worry that it will actually worsen the funding shortfall for some areas. Instead of raising the base grant, the bill would redirect more money to schools with large numbers of high-needs students.

Cutting the bases

David Roth, superintendent of Buckeye Union Elementary School District in El Dorado County, has assembled a team of school administrators to oppose Alvarez’s bill and fight for an increase in the basic grant.

He created a database called Raise the basewhich calculates school district funding disparities over the past 15 years. About 25 parent organizations and 60 small and medium-sized school districts have signed on to support Roth’s campaign. Among the largest: Clovis Unified, Fremont Unified, San Ramon Valley Unified and Murrieta Valley Unified.

“We support the idea that certain student populations need more resources. At the end of the day, we’re all underfunded,” Roth said. “But the base grant has not kept up with rising costs and districts are falling further and further behind.”

Buckeye, a K-12 district in the Sierra foothills, receives just $15,100 per student, far below the state average of $21,000. The district has pockets of wealth, but also areas of poverty. Because of low per-pupil funding, the district is at risk of losing long-standing programs that serve all students, Roth said.

If core funding doesn’t improve, Roth expects cuts to physical education, libraries, counselors and music in the next few years.

“I think those are the basics,” Roth said. “Now we’re patching things up with gum and bandages, but that can’t last forever. Soon we won’t be able to fund a reasonable education program.”

“There is such a demand”

Pinedale Elementary is located in a working-class neighborhood in north Fresno with no sidewalks and little crime and homelessness. Galeana-King describes the district as tough but tight-knit. “Everybody looks out for each other,” she said.

Galeana-King has been a Pinedale parent for 15 years – all three of her children have attended the school. She volunteers in the classroom and is active in the parents’ club, which raises several thousand dollars a year through after-school snack sales, a salsa festival, jogging and other events.

But it’s not easy to raise money in a community where most parents work multiple jobs to make ends meet.

“We have to be understanding,” Galeana-King said. “We want families to be involved, but we have to be reasonable. People are struggling.”

The teachers often pay for the classroom out of their own pockets, while the parent club pays for things like new chessboards for the chess club and the second grade field trip to Monterey. But the needs are endless. If the parent club can raise more money, they would like to provide snacks for the classrooms, new sports equipment, backpacks for the students and other amenities.

“I am incredibly proud to send my children to Pinedale. It may not always have the most financial resources, but it is a school full of people who deeply care about and love children,” she said. “However, our students and staff urgently need more support.”

This article was originally published on CalMatters and is republished under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivatives license.