{"id":9085,"date":"2012-06-21T12:46:03","date_gmt":"2012-06-21T16:46:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/florida\/?p=9085"},"modified":"2012-06-21T12:47:25","modified_gmt":"2012-06-21T16:47:25","slug":"florida-gets-low-marks-on-school-funding-report-card","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/florida\/2012\/06\/21\/florida-gets-low-marks-on-school-funding-report-card\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida Gets Low Marks On School Funding Report Card"},"content":{"rendered":"
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borman818 \/ flickr<\/p>

High-poverty Florida school districts receive less state and local money than wealthier districts, according to a new report card.<\/p><\/div>\n

Florida is one of three states scoring below average on four measures of school funding fairness, according to a national report card.<\/p>\n

The report was produced by the New Jersey-based Education Law Center and Rutgers University researchers<\/a>. The authors argue state funding formulas should send more money to districts with higher poverty rates.<\/p>\n

The study looked at school funding in 2007, 2008 and 2009.<\/p>\n

The researchers argue a good state education funding scheme does two things: Spends more money on education relative to the state’s wealth, and is “progressive,” allocating more money to school districts with higher poverty rates.<\/p>\n

Florida earned poor grades for both counts.<\/p>\n

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Florida school districts with a higher percentage of students qualifying for federal free or reduced price lunches — an oft-used proxy for poverty — received a lower share of state and local education money than districts with a lower percentage of students who qualified for free or reduced lunch.<\/p>\n

For every dollar spent in a low-poverty school district, a higher-poverty school district received just 91 cents — a ‘D’ grade, according to the study.<\/p>\n

Florida also earned an ‘F’ in 2009 for total spending on education as a portion of state gross domestic product, or the overall size of the state economy. The state earned ‘C’ grades for 2007 and 2008.<\/p>\n

The state’s overall funding rank declined to 40th in the nation from 22nd, spending $8,975 in state and local money per student.<\/p>\n

A handful of advocacy groups have filed a lawsuit<\/a> challenging state school funding. The group’s argue Florida is not meeting state constitutional requirements of a “high quality” education<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Read the full report below:<\/p>\n