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Wednesday, March 04, 2009

Make School Funding Top Priority

By Rep. Mimi Stewart
Albuquerque Democrat
      Two things keep us from providing New Mexicans with the quality of public education we want: adequate funding, and a school system that is responsive to students' needs. The Legislature's constitutional mandate is to provide the funds for a sufficient education. While the rest is the responsibility of local school boards, we can improve schools by the way we fund them.
       New Mexico was the second state (after Hawaii) to fund every school district equally, ensuring that every child has an equal opportunity to be well educated. But equitable support is not necessarily sufficient support.
       The last funding formula was written 35 years ago. After more than 70 amendments, it's time to throw out the old, patched-up formula and create one that meets today's needs.
       In 2006, we commissioned the American Institutes for Research to find out how New Mexicans define a sufficient education. We sought input from the public, educators and others.
       The public expressed concerns about adequate funding for rural schools, for non-tested subjects (like music, art and physical education), for native language and heritage. The public also emphasized that local school boards make decisions about local schools.
       Educators called for a longer school year; more support staff to help at-risk students; lower staff-pupil ratios; and programs geared toward retention of native languages and cultures.
       For the first time, we know what we mean when we talk about a sufficient education. The study confirms what everyone has known and has been telling the Legislature for years: even with the increased spending of the last few years, we are not spending enough on our children's education.
       AIR calculated the cost of a sufficient education and reported that we are underfunding public schools by $335 million, or 14.5 percent. The study suggested a simplified funding formula that would be easier to apply, fair across districts, that would take into account amendments to the old formula and be less vulnerable to tampering by districts seeking additional funding.
       Let me emphasize: we are spending 14.5 percent too little to provide a sufficient education. We did not ask what it would cost to provide a top-notch education. However much our young people deserve that, we can't afford it. AIR asked New Mexicans to define a basic, sufficient education, and we told them. They replied that we are not paying enough to get that. We're looking to make ends meet, no more.
       We are paying a tragic price for putting our schools on the financial equivalent of a starvation diet. According to Think New Mexico's Web site, only 54.1 percent of our young people graduate from high school. The national average is over 70 percent.
       According to President Obama's speech to Congress, “three-quarters of the fastest-growing occupations require more than a high school diploma.” Companies consider such things when deciding whether to move operations to our state. Short-changing education is an effective, proven way to depress our economy and keep our people unprepared to take advantage of the opportunities ahead.
       Bottom line: more than 20 school districts require emergency supplemental funding every year.
       The Legislature's Funding Formula Task Force has submitted a revision of the formula. It faces an uphill battle in the House and Senate in these difficult times. Eighty-two of New Mexico's 89 districts have signed a resolution supporting the passage of the new formula; most have included a provision to sue the Legislature if the formula fails to pass.
       Two questions arise: Where do we find $335 million, and what do we intend to do with it when we find it?
       Each school district decides how to use the funds. AIR avoided a one-size-fits-all set of recommendations. Local input was essential at the beginning of the process, and will be an essential component of its execution. New accountability measures will give districts an opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness of their allocation, and revise as necessary.
       But where do we get the money? The easiest thing is to say that it will come from making education our top priority again. Good intentions are easy, but the decisions required to follow through are more difficult. We could close tax loopholes; redirect allocations from other priorities into education, or generate additional revenue through a small increase in the gross receipts tax (50 cents more on each $100 spent) and raising the rate on the top income tax bracket to 6 percent.
       Providing at least a basic education is the single best investment we can make in our future. Voting against a sufficient education is not only bad business, it's unconstitutional, and it's immoral.
       

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