Part 1 – Did you know ?

Part 1

Public schools are funded by local property and other taxes. Districts with more valuable homes and higher property taxes accumulate more funding for their schools. Students impacted by the opportunity gap, often those that are low-income, facing homelesness, trauma, and other challenges, need additional resources such as staff, programming and other academic supports to address their unique needs. Systemic inequities, such as those highlighted in Module 1, contribute to the difference in needs for students across racial and class divides. Equity requires that proportional support is given to students across schools based on their needs. Disparities across state-funded schools reinforce existing social inequities.

Here we can see the relationship among poverty, homelessness, local property taxes, and inequitable school funding. However, it is often a contentious political ambition for states to equitably fund schools by using property taxes gathered from richer districts to fund the needs of poorer districts. In their Inequity in School Funding Report, The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) found that in Southern states, students of color living in or near the poverty line are most vulnerable.