Western Pennsylvania school districts have a problem that doesn\u2019t fit neatly into Pennsylvania\u2019s formula for \u201cadequacy funding.\u201d Per recent reporting, several districts appear ill-equipped to handle a large influx of special-education students, despite increased state-level adequacy funding.<\/p>\n
But funding for Pennsylvania public education has never been higher. The commonwealth now spends nearly $24,000 per <\/a>student<\/a>, the tenth-highest rate in the nation. In fact, the new state budget added about $565 million in adequacy funding<\/a> to districts with supposed \u201cfunding gaps.\u201d<\/p>\n Clearly, how Pennsylvania funds public education is deeply flawed.<\/p>\n Despite the claims of improved \u201cequity,\u201d adequacy funding is anything but equitable. About half of all adequacy funds go to only 15 Pennsylvania school districts.<\/p>\n Plus, this additional money hasn\u2019t led to improved student performance. From 2019 to 2026, Ready to Learn block grants \u2014 the primary funding mechanism for Pennsylvania\u2019s adequacy funding \u2014 have increased by 664<\/a>%<\/a>. However, the average percentage of students demonstrating proficiency has decreased <\/a>by 18% on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment and by 22% on the Keystone Exams. <\/p>\n Pennsylvania\u2019s education-funding formulas are not grounded in reality. None of them are tied to how many students they serve or how well they perform in school. Instead, they rely on \u201chold harmless\u201d to guarantee funding increases for districts\u2014all without any accountability measures to ensure that districts not only spend these funds efficiently but are also held responsible for poor academic performance. <\/p>\n State lawmakers can keep refining these formulas, but none accurately determines what every individual student needs. Students in need of additional academic support, especially special- education students, often rely on specialized care or even third-party services not available in their local districts.<\/p>\n Parents and guardians, on the other hand, know what their kids need. And that\u2019s why it\u2019s of the utmost importance we empower families with the resources they need to make their own choices.<\/p>\n One such resource: the Federal Scholarship Tax Credit. This new program offers tax credits to donors who contribute to scholarship organizations, which can then provide scholarships to eligible students for qualified educational expenses.<\/p>\n This program, despite what the teacher unions tell you, doesn\u2019t take away money from public schools. In fact, it benefits public-school students as much as private-school students. According to a recent analysis, 1.8 million Pennsylvania students<\/a> \u2014 most of whom attend public schools \u2014 would be eligible for the scholarship program.<\/p>\n And Pennsylvania students stand to gain access to a hefty sum of money. Depending on how many tax-filers donate, Pennsylvania could garner between $487 million and $1 billion in new funding<\/a> \u2014 all at no additional cost to taxpayers.<\/p>\n So, what\u2019s standing in the way of millions of Pennsylvania students receiving millions of dollars in scholarships?<\/p>\n Politics \u2014 of course.<\/p>\n Before students can benefit from the new federal program, their governor must opt their state into it. So far, 30 states \u2014 mostly those governed by Republicans but also a few Democrat outliers \u2014 have already done so.<\/p>\n Gov. Josh Shapiro is not one of those governors. Instead, he continues to offer one excuse after another, most likely to appease the teacher unions that fight school choice tooth and nail whenever possible.<\/p>\n But Shapiro should know this new program will be successful in Pennsylvania. The commonwealth is home to some of the most successful tax-credit scholarship programs in the nation, providing more than 101,000 scholarships<\/a> to Pennsylvania kids. And these programs are so popular, there aren\u2019t enough scholarships to go around, leaving nearly 70,000 applicants on waiting lists.<\/p>\n