The failed U.S. public schools are more than 200 percent more expensive to operate today than they were in 1970, according to the most recent figures published by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). These numbers include costs for “instruction, support services, food services, and enterprise operations.”

New York is the most expensive state for K-12 education, with a whopping annual per-pupil price tag of $29,597 in 2020 “in constant dollars based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), prepared by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, adjusted to a school-year basis.” In 1970, the same per-pupil cost for New York public school students was $9,905.

Eastern and northeastern states rank highest in annual education costs. For example, schools in Connecticut spent $23,784 per student in 2020, as opposed to $7,102 in 1970; New Jersey spent $24,597 per student in 2020 compared to $7,587 in 1970. Vermont students cost the system $26,536 each in 2020 compared to $6,026 in 1970. In Washington, DC, the annual cost to “educate” a child in 2020 was $28,454 as opposed to $7,603 in 1970.

Perhaps surprisingly, Wyoming spent more money to educate its students in 2020 than any other western state, including California. Wyoming spent $19,752 compared to $6,391 in 1970, and is surpassed only by Alaska, which posted a 2020 per-pupil expenditure of $22,141 compared to $8,381 in 1970. California spent $15,860 per student in 2020 compared with $9,752 in 1970.

School choice for Pennsylvania?

Public schools in Pennsylvania racked up a per-pupil cost of $20,133 in 2020 as opposed to $6,583 per student in 1970. These figures make a good argument for proponents of HB 479, the Pennsylvania Award for Student Success (PASS) school choice initiative, which was approved by the Republican-led state Senate on June 29. The measure now returns to the Democrat-led state House where budget negotiations are threatening to derail the program.

A private school education in Pennsylvania costs approximately $11,732 per child in 2023 dollars, more than $8,000 less than a public school did in 2020. The PASS program would award scholarships worth between $2,500 and $15,000 per year to eligible students, and would initially target low-income families with children in public schools that rank academically in the bottom 15 percent.

Some Pennsylvania lawmakers want to throw even more money into the state’s failed public-schools rather than encourage competition through the proposed school choice scholarship program. For example, House Education Majority Chairman Peter Schweyer blamed the state government for “failing our schools,” and says he “stands with House Democrats, teachers, and public education advocates to fight for adequate funding for PA Public schools.” Schweyer claims “it’s time to stop demonizing the schools and teachers and start giving them the tools they need to succeed.”

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro (D), a previous supporter of the PASS proposal (dubbed the “Lifeline Scholarship Program” when it was first introduced), now says he will veto the measure if it survives the budget battle. According to a July 8 Twitter post by school choice advocate Corey DeAngelis: “The fight over educational choice in Pennsylvania is far from over. Only a partial budget has been approved for now—and Mr. Shapiro can’t even follow through on his veto threat until Ms. Ward [Sen. Kim Ward, PA Senate interim president pro tempore] reconvenes the Senate. She’s said she won’t do so until Sept. 18, unless the governor comes to his senses first.”

NAEP scores decline — again!

But what exactly have parents gotten for the many billions of tax dollars that have been poured into the public-school system for more than five decades? The answer is a lot if the reference is to education fads and dangerous socio-emotional learning (SEL) including CRT and comprehensive sex education, but precious little in terms of academics instruction. The Spectator.com reported last month that in May, “news emerged about record low scores for history and civics for eighth graders nationwide, with 40 percent scoring ‘below basic.’” Just 13 percent were considered proficient in history.

In addition to these results, the National Assessment for Education Progress (NAEP) recently released its Long-Term Trend Assessment Results in Reading and Mathematics for 13-year-olds tested from October through December of the 2022-2023 school year, and the results are woefully bad.

While many conservatives acknowledge a decline in the overall status of the NAEP as a valid measure — after all it now tests for social and emotional characteristics in possible violation of both federal law and the Fourth Amendment (see Education Reporter Online, November 2021) — its findings are nonetheless worthy of mention.

NAEP reports that “the average scores for 13-year-olds declined 4 points in reading and 9 points in mathematics compared to the previous assessment administered during the 2019-20 school year. Compared to a decade ago, the average scores declined 7 points in reading and 14 points in mathematics.” In addition, reading scores declined “at all selected percentiles since 2020,” meaning that scores dropped at all levels of performance from the lowest to the highest. The results were even worse for math, and these are unlikely to improve given the current politically charged climate.

Last month, Fox News posted an opinion piece on a new math program called “Reparations Math” being offered by the discredited New York Times 1619 Project. The author writes that “Throughout the Reparations Math curriculum, the racial wealth gap is used to justify reparations as the only solution to close that gap....” No opposing viewpoints are given in the curriculum.

The op ed goes on to note: “In states like Illinois, in 2022, only 8% of Illinois Black eighth graders were NAEP Proficient or above in math. That, despite the fact that in 2019 the Chicago school system adopted the 1619 Project curriculum for instruction in every high school.”

The charge that “math is racist” is not new, but the question is how far the NAEP scores will have to fall before parents who remain asleep finally wake up.

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