January 15, 2010 01:23 AM UTC

Race to the Bottom: New Funding Stats Released

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• by: Great Education Colorado

( – promoted by Danny the Red (hair))

As state leaders do important work in promoting Colorado’s application for federal Race to the Top education reform dollars, Colorado itself continues to gain ground in its race to the bottom when it comes to K-12 funding.  Education Week’s annual Quality Counts state school finance data study is out, and the news isn’t good for Colorado.  We’re continuing “the Colorado trajectory” —  falling farther behind the nation and other states that are competing with us for jobs, economic development opportunities and educators.

Here’s a comparison of the 2008,  2009, and 2010 Quality Counts data (note that because of the lag in available data, the new statistics are based on 2007 expenditures — that is before the current recession):

Per pupil funding, adjusted for regional cost differences:

 2008: 38th nationally

 2009: 40th

 2010: 42nd

Per pupil spending (adjusted for regional cost differences) compared to U.S. Average:

  2008: $1,034 below the national average

  2009: $1,449 below the national average

  2010: $1,919 below the national average

Rank in percent of taxable income spent on K-12

  2008: 43rd

  2009: 43rd

  2010: 43rd (Hallelujah!)

Rank in teacher pay parity (i.e., how teacher salaries compare to salaries in comparable professions)

   2008: 43rd

   2010: 50th

That’s the context for the current legislative session — where cuts of at least an average $440 per pupil are virtually certain for the coming school year.  

How about a comparison with our neighboring states?  We are falling precipitously behind our geographically close competitors:

How much more do neighboring states spend per pupil?

  Wyoming:

      2008: $3,718 more per pupil than Colorado

      2009: $5,612 more

      2010: $7,748 more

  Nebraska:

      2008: $1,991 more per pupil than Colorado

      2009: $2,509 more

      2010: $3,265 more

   Kansas

      2008: $923 more per pupil than Colorado

      2009: $1,702 more

      2010: $2,285 more

   New Mexico

      2008: $492 more per pupil than Colorado

      2009: $1,011 more

      2010: $1,452 more