Western Pennsylvania school districts have a problem that doesn’t fit neatly into Pennsylvania’s formula for “adequacy funding.” Per recent reporting, several districts appear ill-equipped to handle a large influx of special-education students, despite increased state-level adequacy funding.
But funding for Pennsylvania public education has never been higher. The commonwealth now spends nearly $24,000 per student, the tenth-highest rate in the nation. In fact, the new state budget added about $565 million in adequacy funding to districts with supposed “funding gaps.”
Clearly, how Pennsylvania funds public education is deeply flawed.
Despite the claims of improved “equity,” adequacy funding is anything but equitable. About half of all adequacy funds go to only 15 Pennsylvania school districts.
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