Closing the Education Funding Gap in Pennsylvania's K-12 System

1. Funding and Accountability in Pennsylvania’s K-12 System EPLC Policy Breakfast September 24, 2008 Edward G. Rendell, Governor Gerald L. Zahorchak, Secretary of Education Diane Castelbuono, Deputy Secretary Elementary and Secondary Education

2. In 2001… 49% of all Pennsylvania students were below grade level in math 42% of all Pennsylvania students were below grade level in reading Pennsylvania was only 1 of 9 states failing to fund pre-kindergarten Pennsylvania had one of the most inadequate and inequitable funding formulas in the nation Pennsylvania Schools: A Look at the Past

3. A Look at the Present: Pennsylvania is on target to meet the student achievement challenge of 2014 • Pennsylvania must live up to its commitment to ensure that every student can perform at grade level by 2014. • Preparing all students to succeed in a competitive high skills knowledge economy is the cornerstone of Pennsylvania's economic development strategy.

4. Pennsylvania’s students are making gains in every subject area and at every grade level… • Pennsylvania is one of only nine states that made progress in improving achievement in elementary school reading and math from 2003 to 2007 • Student achievement is on the rise in every grade and subject 2007 2003

5. And across every demographic subgroup…

6. …But we still have a long way to go • 32% of Pennsylvania students are still below grade level • 576,000 students still need to reach proficiency by 2014 • 1 in 6 students are still BELOW BASIC – the lowest achievement level • Another 1 in 6 students have BASIC skills but are still not at grade level

7. 100 And Pennsylvania has no time to spare Our achievement targets are about to increase rapidly: State reading and math accountability targets will rise 5 more times in the next 6 years, more than double from 2007 to 2014.

8. Pennsylvania can meet the 2014 student achievement challenge Pennsylvania’s strategy (“Know Your ABCs”): Make progress in closing the school funding adequacy gap to expand educational services for students Continue to invest in proven strategies like early childhood education, extra instructional time and tutoring for students who struggle, and high school reform Ensure that the high school diploma is a ticket to real-world success

9. Pennsylvania can meet the 2014 student achievement challenge Pennsylvania’s strategy: Make progress in closing the school funding adequacy gap to expand educational services for students. Continue to invest in proven strategies like early childhood education, extra instructional time and tutoring for students who struggle and teacher training. Ensure that the high school diploma is a ticket to real-world success.

10. School District A spends $17,200 per pupil high wealth, no ELL students School District B ( less than 15 miles down the road from School District A) spends $9,900 per pupil low wealth, high proportion of ELL students For every classroom of 25 students, School District A spends $182,500more than School District B. What could School District B do with an additional $182,500 for every classroom? Pennsylvania’s System of Funding Education is Broken: It’s Inequitable The per-pupil spending gap between Pennsylvania’s wealthiest districts and its poorest districts is huge:

11. Districts with large numbers of “high need” students — like students living in poverty, students with disabilities, and students with limited English proficiency — face greater costs to effectively serve these students. Too often, these “high need” students are the students who are educated in districts with: Pennsylvania’s System of Funding Education is Broken: It’s Inadequate • large class sizes; • rundown buildings; • less experienced teachers teachers; and • outdated textbooks, libraries and technology.

12. The quality of an education that a student receives is based on the where s/he lives, because local revenues (taxes) form the bulk of education spending in the Commonwealth: Pennsylvania’s System of Funding Education is Broken: It’s Obsolete • In terms of “need”: the highest need districts generate the least amount of local revenues, while the lowest need districts tend to generate the most. • In terms of wealth: the poorest districts tend to have the highest tax effort while the wealthiest districts have the lowest. • The wealthiest districts can generate more local funds with less tax effort imposed on their citizens. • Pennsylvania’s poorest districts tend to have the highest tax effort.

13. The 2008-09 budget introduces a school funding formula designed to raise student achievement • The General Assembly’s “Costing-Out Report” provides the first-ever Pennsylvania-specific school funding target based on what research says it costs to fund a quality education. • The 2008-09 education budget takes the first step in a six-year plan to meet the state’s funding responsibility towards every school district’s adequacy funding target. • Pennsylvania’s plan: • Moves school districts towards adequate resource levels • Ensures that the new investment means more educational opportunity for students • Implements the new formula in a sustainable and fiscally responsible manner

14. Step 1: Start with the Legislature’s Costing-Out Study adequacy target for every district • The regular education adequacy target for each school district includes: • A base amount of $8,355 per student, which represents the costing-out study’s recommended $8,003 per student adjusted for inflation. • An adjustment up for every student who is low-income or an English language learner. • A size adjustment to direct additional aid to small and mid-size districts. • A geographic price adjustment to account for differences in costs of living across the Commonwealth.

15. Step 2: Calculate the State Share of Each School District’s Adequacy Gap • Compare each district’s adequacy target to its actual spending; the difference is the district’s adequacy gap. • The proposed state share of each school district’s adequacy gap is based on the district’s tax burden and its local wealth; districts where local taxes are higher get the most assistance in closing the gap. • The 2008-09 Budget provides $274 million, a 5.5% basic education increase, as the first step in a 6-year $2.6 billion state funding commitment.

16. Step 3: Ensuring the new investment directly benefits student achievement • In order to boost student achievement, new resources must increase services to students. • New state funds above inflation must be invested in… • Up to 10% • Other strategies to increase achievement • One-time operational cost • At least 80% • More classroom time, such as tutoring or longer school days or years • Teacher training • New and more rigorous courses • Class size reduction • Early childhood education • Recruiting effective teachers and principals • Up to 10% • Maintain existing programs that meet the stated goals • One time operational cost

17. Only districts with increases of more than 4.4% (n=137 districts) needed to invest in new services. Academically challenged districts (n=55 districts) Districts in school improvement or corrective action, or Districts with at least one school in school improvement or corrective action required state approval for their investment plans Accountability: The Impact on School Districts and Taxpayers

18. The new basic education subsidy is being invested wisely: 38,100 students will receive more instruction through intensive tutoring, longer school days and longer school years 2,100 students will benefit from pre-kindergarten and full-day kindergarten 3,400 students will be in smaller classes 121,000 students will benefit from more college-prep course offerings and stronger curriculum 243,000 students will benefit from intensive training for their teachers Accountability: The Impact on Students

19. Pennsylvania can meet the 2014 student achievement challenge Pennsylvania’s strategy: Make progress in closing the school funding adequacy gap to expand educational services for students. Continue to invest in proven strategies like early childhood education, extra instructional time and tutoring for students who struggle, and teacher training. Ensure that the high school diploma is a ticket to real-world success.

20. Improving achievement requires continued investment in proven programs • The 2008-09 budget invests $86.4 million in Pre-K Counts, a 15 percent increase from 2007-08, to enable 800 more children to participate in pre-kindergarten and to respond to parents’ requests for more full-day programs. • The Accountability Block Grant allocates $271 million in funds for all districts to invest in 15 proven practices, from teacher training to reduced class size to providing students with health and social services. • The Educational Assistance Program provides $65 Million to PA’s neediest districts to provide tutoring for students who struggle academically.

21. Pennsylvania can meet the 2014 student achievement challenge Pennsylvania’s strategy: Make progress in closing the school funding adequacy gap to expand educational services for students. Continue to invest in proven strategies like early childhood education, extra instructional time and tutoring for students who struggle, and teacher training. Ensure that the high school diploma is a ticket to real-world success.

22. Three-quarters of all jobs require highly skilled workers Chart High skill workers Pg 4 of College report Rendell Performance report

23. The high school diploma must prepare all students for the high-skill global economy • Looking at new ways to make sure that a high school diploma from Allentown is as valuable as a high school diploma from Turkeyfoot Valley or Upper St. Clair. • Pennsylvania must provide more support to help school districts meet students’ needs – including new resources in the adequacy-based school funding formula as well as: • The creation of a voluntary model curriculum for high school • New tools for identifying and helping struggling students • Enhancement of teacher training • Creating better high schools through Classrooms for the Future, Project 720 and Dual Enrollment.

24. Dual Enrollment opens the door to higher education • Since it began in 2005, 35,772 students in 351 districts and CTC’s have benefited from this program, including more than 16,000 high school students enrolling in 24,000 college courses this fall alone. Project 720 maximizes the time a student spends in the classroom • The budget includes $10.5 million to sustain Project 720 as a tool to help school districts implement a college and career ready curriculum for all students.

25. Resources + Accountability = Better Results Remember your ABCs: Make progress in closing the school funding adequacy gap to expand educational services for students. Continue to invest in proven strategies like early childhood education, extra instructional time and tutoring for students who struggle, and teacher training. Ensure that every high school diploma is a ticket to real-world success.

26. Diane Castelbuono, Deputy Secretary Pennsylvania Department of Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education Questions? Contact Dominique Raymond Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary Email: draymond@state.pa.us Telephone: 717-214-4391

27. The mission of the Pennsylvania Department of Education is to lead and serve the educational community, and to enable each individual to grow into an inspired, productive, and fulfilled lifelong learner.