Data/Research: Federal P-12 Policy & Funding

As the funding landscape continues to evolve, it will be critically important to understand the nuances of the organizations that fund P-12 schools

General

The U.S. Department of Education provides an overview of its role in the federal funding cycle.

A report from Frontline Education is a reminder of how school funding is broken down, with about 10 percent coming from the federal government.

The Education Law Center outlines how federal funding is broken down compared to state funding, and allows users to assess how fair funding is in their own state.

The Pew Charitable Trusts analyzed funding trends across two decades, and shared its insights in the form of charts, graphs and text.

The ASCD performed an analysis which determined that school funding in the U.S. is unequal, and the organization outlines the ensuing effects on the students in schools that get more funding vs. reduced funding.

Key Coverage

“Approved ESSA Plans: Explainer and Key Takeaways From Each State,” from Education Week.

“Title I: Rich School Districts Get Millions Meant for Poor Kids,” from U.S. News and World Report (2016).

“Charter Schools in Surprise Political Fight as Trump and Democrats Turn Away,” from The New York Times (2019).

“Trump Signs Education Spending Bill That Funds 29 Programs He Sought to Abolish,” from Education Week (2019).

“As Pandemic Tests Public Schools, Betsy DeVos Pushes School Choice,” from The Washington Post (2020).

“New Federal Rules For Distributing School Money: An ‘Unfunded Mandate’?” from NPR (2016). (Note: This Obama proposal never took effect, but the article explains important issues that are involved very clearly.)

“Why the School Spending Graph Betsy DeVos Is Sharing Doesn’t Mean What She Says It Does,” from Chalkbeat (2018).

Updated March 2021.