Stuff like this is why I roll my eyes every time I hear that schools are underfunded and how we need to give them just a little more funding, and surely things will get better. If they're just going to pass students anyways, what's the point of increasing the funding?
That trope needs to die. California's schools are not underfunded. California spends a record amount on education[0], over $18k per child.
"Reflecting the changes to Proposition 98 funding levels noted above, total K-12 per-pupil expenditures from all sources are projected to be $18,837 in 2020-21 and $18,000 in 2021-22—the highest levels ever (K-12 Education Spending Per Pupil). The decrease between 2020-21 and 2021-22 reflects the significant allocation of one-time federal funds in 2020-21."
$8,200 per pupil in Cupertino, $24,700 in Woodside
CUSD is considering closure of three schools and eliminating librarians and art and music due to the failure of passing a parcel tax, and low per-pupil funding. Lots of folks on the street argue “it’s the administrator salaries!” but when you actually look at the budgets there’s just not enough money to keep the schools running. Teachers commute from over the mountains. Administrators are paid reasonably, but that’s the cost when their skill sets would easily apply to project management at a local tech company. Money’s not always the solution but sometimes it is.
What on earth do they do with that money? You could hire a private tutor per four children for that money and have them do it in the children's homes.
Would end up as a private tutor half-time for two-child families, with them doing homework the other half-time. If you had four children it'd be full-time!
The money isnt evenly distributed at all. Plus, private schools in areas that actually spend 18k/student will cost you more than 18k on their own. Most in the Bay are over 20k now
New York City spends more per student than anywhere else in the US (<https://www.silive.com/news/2019/06/how-much-does-new-york-c...>). Baltimore, an incredibly poor and run-down city, spends the third most. #4-6 and #8 are all wealthy suburbs of Washington DC, but their schools are all far better than those of Baltimore or NYC on average, despite Baltimore spending slightly more per student and NYC spending 60-70% more.
I mean, my school where I went could only afford four days a week. We had so many budget cuts that the school decided the only way to go forward was to cut the fifth day. This lasted for years and I don’t know if they’ve ever returned to a normal schedule.
