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By Howard Stephenson
Utah State Senator
and
Dr. Larry Shumway
State Superintendent of Public Instruction

We recently read the latest Census Bureau re-port that shows Utah still ranks 51st in per pupil spending. The rankings elicit both positive and negative feelings. While we can be proud of efficiencies in Utah’s school systems, it’s discomforting to recognize our state spends nearly $4,000 less than the national average annually for each student in a Utah public school. We spend about $900 less than the next lowest state. The report rekindles debate around a persistent question, “Does the amount we spend in public education matter?”

We are two people who are often on opposite sides of political issues. In many ways, we see the world from very different perspectives. But here are some things we agree on when it comes to public education spending:

We agree that the metric of per pupil spending is not a particularly good measure of how money matters in education, nor are the rankings especially useful in comparing state by state educational performance. There are important variables among states that make per pupil spending an “apples to oranges” proposition. For example, Utah, with its highly consolidated school district organiza-tion—41 districts instead of hundreds—has extraordinary administrative efficiency when compared to states with lots of small school districts. And Utah’s concentration of student population in metropolitan areas results in additional savings. Moreover, our growing student population ensures efficiencies compared to states with declining enrollments where school boards find it politically difficult to close half empty buildings. These factors enable Utah to get a relatively bigger share of scarce resources into the classroom.

But we also agree on a fundamental principle: Money matters in public education. Anyone who has watched or participated in the appropriations process during a session of the Utah Legislature will understand how much it matters. A representative wants a program of arts specialists in schools—and seeks an appropriation. A senator would like to increase the availability of computers and instructional software in classrooms—and seeks an appropriation. The State Board of Education proposes a program to make counselors more readily available to high school students—and seeks an appropriation.

Clearly, money matters.

We agree that Utahns are getting a great return on their public education investment. Teachers, principals, superintendents, custodians, transportation workers, and others, are generally pedaling as fast as they can. We get, for our comparative spending, a solid program that produces solid re-sults. We agree we should always look for efficiencies, to eliminate waste, and to do better. And we agree that it is a mistake to think that money doesn’t matter.

Mostly, we agree that disagreements over how we talk about our problems far too often get in the way of actually FINDING SOLUTIONS TO OUR PROBLEMS. We agree that the discussion should not be whether we spend more or less than other states; rather the discussion must focus on what we want for Utah kids in the classroom, how we will go about getting it, and what resources are re-quired to accomplish that. And we agree to work toward that end with respect, civility, and honesty.

This blog post was originally published in the August newsletter of the Utah Taxpayers Association.


Howard Stephenson is President of Utah Taxpayers Association and Utah State Senate Chair of the Public Education Appropriations Subcommittee. He represents District 11 which includes Alpine, Bluffdale, Highland, Riverton, and parts of Draper, Herriman, and Lehi.

Dr. Larry Shumway is the newly appointed State Superintendent of Public Instruction. He has thirty years experience in education as a teacher, principal, and district superintendent.

3 Comments:

 Rick said...

Perhaps you could also post Utah's percent of gross state product spent on education compared to other states.

I guarantee you Utah won't be 51st.

8/07/2009 10:17 PM  

 Anonymous said...

Yes, comparing Utah to places like Washington D.C. , or Singapore for that matter, is comparing "apples to oranges." Comparing Utah to places that are demographically similar is apples to apples and clearly illustrated by the Utah Foundation report on school funding in Utah. We learn we should be doing better by this data, we're not that solid.

Added to the list of striving for civil debate, and keeping focused on a solution, should be, "keeping spin to a minimum" which means real honesty.

I appreciate the cooperation between the superintendent and the senator but when so much of what we hear from the legislature is about making public education competitive, how can we ignore rankings and comparisons? You state, "These factors enable Utah to get a relatively bigger share of scarce resources into the classroom." Will the 65% solution bill be back again this session? Were fingers crossed behind backs when your post was written?

Let's start with working on honesty first.

8/08/2009 11:15 AM  

 Anonymous said...

Howard Stephenson writes about respect and civility (or perhaps that was Larry Shumway's contribution) yet just a few lines above "His Corner" he complains of the "scare tactics" of voucher opponents. In other articles he refers to "educrats" and the "spending lobby." If the Senator wants respectful and civil dialog, I suggest he engage in a little self examination.

8/11/2009 5:59 PM  

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