Georgia's low income students have performed measurably worse on state tests than their high-income classmates, and the distance between the two groups is greater in Georgia than almost every other state based on national comparisons. State lawmakers have an opportunity and a responsibility to do something about it, especially now that the pandemic has worsened the situation. Georgia is one of only six states that does not provide additional funding to schools to educate students living in poverty, and our lawmaker’s inability to act is reflected in student outcomes.
Thankfully, Georgia’s Senate passed Senate Resolution 650 establishing a committee to review the state’s education funding formula. The committee has met twice; the next is slated for Friday, the 21st of October. The Georgia Budget and Policy Institute (GBPI), where I am a senior education policy analyst, has joined with other groups in the coalition Fund Georgia’s Future to encourage the study committee to fix the way we fund schools so that educators can serve every child based on their needs. Lawmakers should use this committee to recommend adding an Opportunity Weight to the state’s funding formula — additional dollars to educate students living in poverty to ensure they have the necessary resources to excel.
Currently, our state’s teachers are burned out and local schools are losing quality teachers because of the stress. Georgia Department of Education’s own report on the matter shows a profession on the brink. We ask educators to be miracle workers for children, teaching in schools that have on average only one counselor for every 419 students and are lucky to have an onsite nurse. As school districts struggle to recruit and retain quality educators, it is integral for state leaders to take action to ensure that students from every economic background receive a quality education in our state. Adding an Opportunity Weight to Georgia’s school funding formula would mean that schools serving large portions of low-income students could hire more teachers and reduce turnover in areas where teachers are being burnt out due to large class sizes. Research out of the Education Law Center shows teacher attrition is highest in majority Black districts and those serving a large number of students living in poverty. This has been partly caused by the lack of resources and the quality of teacher pay in these districts. Smaller classes have the added benefit of allowing teachers to offer more one-on-one attention to their pupils that need more support. An Opportunity Weight would allow districts to enhance the quality of learning in communities that have been starved of the chance by limited funding.
The benefits go beyond bolstering the teaching profession.
Georgia’s Black Belt — the pathway of rural counties with a high concentration of Black students and high portions of students living in poverty — students seldom have opportunities to take Advanced Placement (AP) courses. Fifteen school districts in the Black Belt did not have a single student take an AP course in 2018. The cost of materials from the course can deter districts from offering these necessary college-level opportunities. If lawmakers continue in this direction, these districts will only continue to be far less prepared and equipped to teach quality curricula.
Additionally, an Opportunity Weight could also supplement school support staff like counselors and nurses. Several studies show that having a sufficient number of school counselors results in positive outcomes for low-income students, students that are learning English as a second language, and children exhibiting aggressive behavior or actions associated with depression. Hiring additional counselors has been found to be financially practical as well since it is more cost-effective than alternative policies aimed to support students’ socio-emotional needs.
The idea of adding funding for economically-disadvantaged students is not new, nor is it revolutionary. Nearly every state provides this type of additional funding, and it typically has bipartisan support. In fact, Gov. Nathan Deal’s Education Reform Commission recommended adding an Opportunity Weight to provide funding for lower-income students back in 2015. The need for an Opportunity Weight has been exacerbated by persistent cuts to the state’s education budget over the last two decades. The Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 budget has restored significant cuts to school funding, but it still lacks critical investments to raise success and outcomes for Georgia’s students. Educating without state budget cuts should be seen as a floor, not the ceiling of state investment.
With a record surplus in state reserves, there is a clear opportunity to take action to help the state’s most vulnerable scholars. There is still a meeting on the docket for SR 650’s review committee. It is my hope that the panel will take a hard look at the present need for Georgia’s most vulnerable students and take action during the session to provide the resources that children deserve.
Stephen Owens is a senior K-12 education analyst for the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute, a nonprofit based in Atlanta that analyzes tax policies and proposed budgets in Georgia.
