School districts across the region are seeing a mixed bag when it comes to state funding under a spending plan proposed by Gov. Tom Wolf this week.
The Bradford Area School District would see an increase of $303,313, which Superintendent Katy Pude says would assist in meeting rising costs and continue to provide quality programs for students.
“The governor’s proposed budget is definitely a step in the right direction for schools across the Commonwealth,” she said. “His desire to increase funding for vocational training, early childhood education, special education and to the basic education funding formula demonstrates a commitment to providing a quality education for children across the state.”
School officials back the basic education funding formula, since it is helping to ensure more equitable funding for poorer school districts without a strong tax base, Pude said.
Wolf’s budget proposal for education calls for a $100 million increase in basic education; $40 million increase in Pre-K Counts and Head Start; $20 million increase for special education; $15 million increase for the Pennsylvania System of Higher Education; and $10 million for career and technical education.
Wolf touted that a record investment in education was proposed, said Otto-Eldred School District Superintendent Matthew Splain.
“If we value the public education system and understand the demands of our school environments as well as the needs of our communities, every year we should see a record investment in education,” he said.
But at Otto-Eldred School District, he said the district might see an overall increase of $70,000 in basic education funding and special education funding, an amount that Splain says would hardly cover an increase in state pension obligation for 2018-19.
He said that the formula has proven successful in bringing about new state money in a logical, predictable manner.
“However, the formula was never intended to provide adequate funding to schools,” Splain said. “Pennsylvania continues to have one of the largest disparities in school funding in the nation.”
At St. Marys Area School District, the funding increase would be about the same as this year’s –– about $25,000, said St. Marys Area School District Superintendent Dr. G. Brian Toth.
“Compared to our socioeconomic (community wealth, size and make up) peers, the data shows that the St. Marys Area School District receives $3,000 less per student per year than similar districts,” he said. “To make us equal to what districts of our socioeconomic background receive, we would need our state subsidy to increase by $6,000,000 annually.”
What needs to happen, he said, is separate analysis conducted and legislative action to fix how much St. Marys Area should receive from the state.
Splain said that Wolf has concentrated on pre-school funding as well as career and technical funding, two areas which are vital for the development of students and job growth in the area.
“Districts are hoping for a quicker resolution to the state budget as compared to two of the last three years,” he said. “We would not expect to see any proposals for tax increases in an election year, that may be the key to seeing an ‘on-time’ budget.”
