Schools across the state are facing funding shortages as enrollment numbers dip and levies fail with voters.
Levies had been reliable sources of income since 2009, up until this year, KFLD reports. Districts are having a much more difficult time convincing voters to support the levies.
Moses Lake school district failed to pass their levy in April. This is the second time voters have rejected a levy.
Across the state of Washington, school districts face budget shortfalls.
The Vancouver Public Schools board of directors voted in March to reduce the 2024-25 budget by $35 million, KGW reported. The budget cut will result in the loss of 262 staff positions, including 50 elementary teachers, 63 secondary teachers, and 33 teachers on special assignment.
The Toppenish school district is facing a budget shortfall of $8.6 million, NBC reported. Several positions will be cut, and salaries reduced in the upcoming school year.
The Puyallup School District reports a $14 million budget gap, and the Northshore Public School District is short $26 million.
In Washington state, teachers made $134,913 on average in salary and benefits during the 2022-23 school year. Classified employees averaged $96,784 and school administrators made $211,551. Most of the budget goes towards staff.
Funding for Washington schools is based on the number of students enrolled. Schools are currently allocated $18,354 for each student attending a Washington state public school. State spending has more than doubled over the last decade and is now one of the highest in the country.
While per pupil spending has increased, enrollment has decreased. Parents have been pulling their children out of public schools at a rapid rate. Even as the population has increased, the school districts have lost 46,000 students in the last few years, the Washington Policy Center reports.
Private school enrollment has skyrocketed, KUOW reports. Washington state has seen one of the most significant spikes in the country. Only Tennessee and Rhode Island saw a bigger jump in private school enrollment than Washington.
The homeschool movement also continues to expand. Homeschooling has increased by 43 percent with more families choosing to teach their children at home.
Across the country, the school choice movement is growing, as Heartland Daily News reported. Several states have passed, or are working to pass, some form of school choice. Parents are looking for options outside of the government-run schools.
A Gallup poll shows that among Americans across the political spectrum, confidence in the government-run school systems is declining.
Confidence in public education has dropped from 41 percent in 2020 to 28 percent in 2023. Among Democrats, 43 percent say they have confidence in public schools. Only 14 percent of Republicans and 29 percent of Independents are confident the government-run schools are doing a good job.
“I have followed the state legislature and changes in education policy closely for years,” writes Liv Finne, Director for the Center for Education at the Washington Policy Center. “I have never seen the rising level of distrust and broad decline in reputation for public schools as I have seen during the current legislative session.”
“In Washington state, despite the overwhelming opposition of the wealthy WEA union, there is a growing chorus of voices seeking access to better learning opportunities for children, Finne writes. “These voices will grow louder every year as families hear about progress in other states in using public aid to give children access to the best education possible.”
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