School
Funding:
The Value of Small Schools
in Missouri
Missouri-specific
research shows that:
1)
The average current expenditure per eligible pupil across all Missouri
school districts is $6633.
<
Expenditures differ somewhat by size and rurality:
Ø $7058
in K-8 districts (with an average enrollment of 150 students) vs. $6561 in K-12
districts (with an average enrollment of 1983 students)
Ø $6677
in rural districts vs. $6533 in non-rural districts[1]
Ø $6974
in small K-12 districts (under 630 students) vs. $6265 in large K-12 districts
(over 630 students)[2]
Ø
$6566 in rural K-12 districts vs. $6552 in
non-rural K-12 districts
<
Very small district size can be associated with higher expenditures per
pupil, simply because many of the costs in education are fixed, either by
necessity, regulation or convention. Every school, no matter how small, has
subject-area certified teachers, a principal, counselor, etc.
2)
Small rural districts
and large non-rural districts have the highest average tax levies in Missouri[3]
<
In 2002 the average total tax levy was:
Ø $4.16 in the state’s 224 small rural
districts
Ø $4.15 in the 154 large non-rural districts
Ø $3.66 in the 118 large rural districts
Ø $3.36 in the 28 small non-rural districts
3) The foundation formula does not adequately address the inequities in funding across Missouri school districts
<
2002 data show that there is a $9187 (301%) difference in per pupil
spending between the highest-spending ($13,748) and lowest-spending ($4,561)
districts in the state[4]
<
When the formula is less than fully funded, the poorest school
districts, as measured by equalized assessed valuation per child, receives the
greatest reduction in funding per child
4) The amount of local tax dollars spent on education in Missouri has little relationship to district residents’ ability to pay
< The district median household income in Missouri ranges from a high of $140,917 to a low of $16,192, resulting in a difference of $124,725 between the wealthiest and poorest school districts[5]
< Only 7% of the variance in district total levy is explained by median household income. This shows that how wealthy or how poor the people residing in any school district are has little bearing on the amount of the tax levy that voters approve.
< Non-rural districts derive an average of 10% more revenue from local and county dollars, but the assessed valuation in non-rural districts averages $317 million more than in each rural district
< If the wealthiest district in the state maintains a $3.20 levy, the tax levy in the poorest district in the state would have to increase to $63.92 in order to generate equivalent dollars per student[6]
|
|
In Small Districts (under 600) |
In Large Districts (over 600) |
In Rural Districts |
In Non-Rural Districts |
|
Avg Median Household Income |
$31,396 |
$36,020 |
$31,942 |
$37,992 |
|
Avg Median Family Income |
$36,491 |
$42,646 |
$37,143 |
$45,441 |
|
Avg Assessed Valuation |
$14 million |
$230 million |
$29 million |
$346 million |
|
Avg Assessed Valuation/Student |
$50,054 |
$75,263 |
$51,628 |
$79,542 |
|
Local/County $’s as % of Tot Rev |
42% |
49% |
43% |
53% |