Steven Singer describes a new report that reached a startling conclusion: the federal government shortchanged the nation’s public schools by hundreds of billions, at the same time that the top earners raked in billions of dollars.
He writes, in part:
Fun Fact: Between 2005 and 2017, the federal government withheld $580 billion it had promised to spend on students from poor families and students with disabilities.
Fun Fact: Over that same period, the personal net worth of the nation’s 400 wealthiest people ballooned by $1.57 trillion.
So, rich people, consider this the bill.
A new report called “Confronting the Education Debt” commissioned by the Alliance to Reclaim Our Schools (AROS) details the shortfall in minute detail.
For instance:
$347 billion owed to educate low-income students most of whom are children of color.
$233 billion owed to provide services for students with disabilities.
And this is just the shortfall of the last dozen years! That’s just money due to children who recently graduated or are currently in the school system!
We’ve been cheating our children out of the money we owe them for more than half a century!
Diane Ravitch's blog 
I am circulating the breakout report for Cincinnati.
Frankly the federal government should pay every single dime of the cost of special education services that are mandated by federal law.
The feds passed a law agreeing to pay 40% of the cost of special education that the law mandated. The feds have never paid as much as 15%. That is a debt of billions. An unfunded mandate.
Even 40% pushes billions of costs onto states and local school districts.
Do you remember when Republicans cried out “unfunded mandate” for almost any federal requirement? Now their silence is definitive of their real goal.
The divide between STATE Democrats and national Democrats on public schools is getting interesting:
“ChrisKingFL
90 percent of Florida’s students are in public schools. That’s where our focus must be.
I’m with AndrewGillum — let’s invest a billon dollars into rebuilding our schools and ensuring a great quality public education for every child.”
The same thing is happening in Ohio. The national politicians are still reciting the approved ed reform lines, but people running at the STATE level are vowing to start supporting public schools.
I never thought I’d read “90% are in public schools” – that fact is never mentioned in ed reform.
It’s pretty exciting, really. We are actually talking about public schools again in these campaigns! It has been YEARS in Ohio. At least 12.
First we need a “blue wave” at every level. Then the next election cycle we can focus on weeding out the corporate Dems that do nothing for public education except to divert tax dollars to the 1%.
No, no voy a decir nada.
This is a very interesting post on our funding disparities due to using property taxes to fund education. Poor students in districts with lower property values get systematically shortchanged. Both the federal and state governments have been actively pursuing ways to fail to meet their obligations. Often the courts have not been helpful. Even when ordered to increase funding in some states, the orders have no consequences or ability to enforce their ruling. We need to restore Title 1 to its original intent, to increase the funding required to educate at-risk students. We need to stop allowing Title 1 to be co-opted by the testing lobby.
Pennsylvania has been overrun by profiteers, corrupt politicians and political impasse. The disparities between rich and poor districts is great and stark. Pennsylvania like Florida needs to clear out the legislature of those that work for the charter lobby and replace them with representatives that work for the public. It is the only way to build a better future in the commonwealth.
Correction: disparities are great and stark.
It’s not just the Federal government.
Governors like Cuomo and state legislatures have done the same.
I don’t know why the people of NY let Cuomo get away with it.
Perhaps they are just clueless?
The changing membership in the State Senate might change the NY dynamic and rein in Cuomo’s eagerness to help charters.
Creating scarcity in plenty is a trick of monarchy. It usually ends poorly.
In the USofA monarchy = oligarchy = plutocracy = kleptocracy!
It certainly doesn’t equal democracy or even a democratic republic.
The fact is that this country doesn’t give a damn about educating poor students no matter what their skin tone and/or ethnic background. They’re poor, they don’t deserve what god’s chosen people, the rich elites, make sure their children have.
In this country we (yes, we) have more than enough “wealth” to easily ensure that all children could receive the education that they need and desire, we just don’t have the political will. I, me, mine is a brutal philosophy for those who haven’t been chosen by their god to steal and horde the benefits of society.
“No, no voy a decir nada.” ?! I have great difficulty with biting my tongue as well. 🙂
How blameless are Arne Duncan and Bill Gates regarding this shortchanging?
One more reason to abolish the federal Dept of Education. Education should be a state/municipal enterprise, and the feds should just get the hell out of it.
State/municipal governments are closer to the people. Why send your tax dollars to Washington and have them keep fees and overhead, and then return 50c on the dollar?