State Debt Calls for Fund Cuts to Education System
Guest blogger, ITA administrative intern Samantha Bandstra, shares an intern’s perspective on how the public education system is affected by state debt and calls for fund cuts. Read her writeup on the Illinois State Board of Education’s new budget proposal below.
Illinois Budget Proposal for Education
As a result of the debt accumulated by Illinois, the state is moving to cut and redistribute its funds in all areas. One of the areas that will face considerable reductions and reworking is the public education system. In response to necessity, Illinois General Assembly has devised HB 2808 – a budget proposal that addresses how the state plans to reallot its funds.
The Proposal: Equitable Funding
The aim of the proposal is to make sure that in the next ten years, Illinois has a public education system that ensures the educational development of every child to their full capacities. To accomplish that, Section 18-8.15 of the HB 2808 creates a method of funding public education that is “evidence based; is sufficient to ensure every student receives a meaningful opportunity to learn irrespective of race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, or community-income level; and is sustainable and predictable” (HB 2808, 2017, p. 308). So, the aim of this budget proposal is to make sure that education is equitable across all school districts.
Evidence-Based Funding Formula to Determine Funding
In making education equal across all school districts, the budget proposal addresses the achievement gap between high and low-income neighborhoods. Because schools are funded through property taxes, the proposal aims to “relieve the disproportionate burden placed on local property taxes to fund schools” (HB 2808, 2017, p. 309). To redistribute the money, the bill outlines an evidence-based funding formula that calculates how much schools currently pay for implementing research-based activities, how much the local area is assumed to contribute to the school, the school’s current adequacy of funding, and then redistributes money to those districts that are least well-funded (HB 2808, 2017, p. 309). So, funds might be redistributed from some wealthier schools to low-income schools.
Decrease Class Sizes
In each school district (wealthy, middle, and low-income), class sizes will be reduced. Each Organizational Unit (more simply, each school) shall receive the funding it needs to have one full-time teacher for each 15 children in grades Kindergarten through 3rd grade, and one full-time teacher for every 25 students in grades 4-12 (HB 2808, 2017, p. 325). So, small class sizes will be ensured to provide needed attention to individual students.
Low-Income Student Investments
Under this bill, additional investments will be made in low-income students. For every 125 Low-Income Count students in grades K-12, each school shall receive funding to pay one Full Time intervention Teacher (tutor), one pupil support staff, one extended day teacher, and one summer position (HB 2808, 2017 p. 331). So, low-income school will get funding for teacher positions that do not exist in high-income schools. Funding for low-income schools is a major need addressed in the proposal.
Special Education Funding
However, funding for special education is also a major aspect of the bill. This bill outlines funding changes in special education for all school districts, grades K-12. One full time special education teacher position and one full time instructional assistant will be provided for every 141 students with disabilities in grades pre-kindergarten through grade 12. For every 1,000 students with disabilities in grades pre-kindergarten through grade 12, one full time psychologist shall be provided (HB 2808, 2017, p. 332). This means that special education teachers will have huge caseloads.
Reactions to the Budget Proposal
Reactions to this budget proposal have been radically different, depending on a person’s position in the school district and how they will be affected. I talked with one woman who teaches special education in the Evanston area, and one person who sends his kids to school in the Englewood area.
Evanston
The Evanston area special education teacher reacted to the special education budget changes. Her school will need to get creative to ensure all children with special needs receive the education they need. While class sizes for the general classroom will be reduced, there will also be less funding for special education, meaning the students with special needs will not be getting the attention they need. She compared having students with special needs in the classroom to putting Beginner’s Orchestra students with Advanced Orchestra students: it works, but the Beginners are not getting the attention they need and feel intimidated by the Advanced players, and the Advanced Orchestra students are frustrated with the Beginners and are slowed down from a pace that is congruent with their abilities. Likewise, Special Education is needed to ensure that each student gets the attention they need: whether they have disabilities or they are advanced learners. One more point is that parents of kids with special needs are already financially weighted, and picking up the extra cost in getting their children special education services will be difficult.
Englewood
On the other hand, the parent of a student in the Englewood area reacted positively to Illinois education budget changes. Currently, school funding is based on property taxes. In Englewood, they have low property taxes, and likewise low school funding from those taxes. He desires equitable school funding for his child. Even choosing to go to a school outside of the Englewood district is hard – he said applying to get into another school district is like applying to get into a college, and many schools are picky and hard to get into. When I asked him about special education in Englewood, he believes that Special Ed classrooms are mostly filled with children with behavioral needs, so he does not think they need more funding for Special Education. He also feels that people in neighborhoods that have higher property taxes can afford the extra cost to have their children in special education.
The Unique Adequacy Target
Both the special education teacher in the Evanston Area and the parent of a student in the Englewood area agreed that Chicago and Illinois are already in massive debt and revisions to the budget need to be made. They disagreed how the resources should be distributed, but they agreed that equal funding does not mean fair. Each school should be evaluated separately.
However, according to this budget proposal, the evidence-based funding formula will determine a unique adequacy target for each Organizational Unit. This unique adequacy target will be based on how the school is currently funded, how much the local area is assumed to contribute financially, and the school’s current adequacy of funding. The evidence-based funding formula will then be applied overall to determine which schools are least well-funded and redistribute finances to them (HB 2808, 2017, p. 309).
Summary
In conclusion, under this proposal, financial resources for education will be moved from some districts and given to others that are not as well funded. Additionally, special education funding will decrease in Illinois schools, resulting in fewer special education teachers funded by the state. This bill is majorly working towards closing the achievement gap between high-income districts and low-income. Because Illinois is already in major debt, the plan is to redistribute money to the schools that are least well-funded (considering each districts’ needs and resources).
References
HB 2808. Sec. 18-8.15. Assemb. 100th General. 2017-2018. (IL 2017).