The A-B-Cs of School Funding in Kansas

The facts taxpayers deserve to know

Spending on education in Kansas was the central point of debate in the Kansas Legislature this session, not just because K-12 education accounts for 53% of the state budget. Education spending should have been scrutinized more closely by the Legislature, but the Kansas State

Total aid per pupil in Kansas is now $12,225, an increase of 26% in the last 5 years.

Board of Education, prodded by the Kansas NEA, refused to consider a variety of savings and performance improvement strategies that would benefit both the students and the taxpayers of Kansas.

Despite adding 5,467 positions and billions in additional spending during the past 5 years, school districts in Kansas were unable to demonstrate marked improvements in academic performance. Yet the powerful school lobby convinced enough legislators to support a huge sales tax increase which would assure millions more dollars be thrown at the schools with no accountability.

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Kansas Board of Education drops out of federal grant program

Favored the largest state tax increase in history instead

In April 2010, the Kansas State Board of Education voted 9-0 to drop out of the federal “Race to the Top” $4.35 billion competitive grant program. Kansas was cut in the first round of competition after ranking 29th out of the 41 participants.
In the “Race to the Top” technical review report of Kansas’ proposal, the reviewers at the U.S. Dept. of Education found that, “...the state’s school funding formula was reformed in 2005 (by the Montoy court mandate), but there is no evidence that this was related to, or resulted in increasing student achievement or graduation rates, narrowed achievement gaps, or resulted in other important outcomes.” More >>