The COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on the U.S. public education system, diminishing enrollment by unprecedented numbers. As a growing contingent of parents have enrolled their kids in private or charter schools or turned to home-schooling, a key consequence has been less money for public schools and districts, as public school funding is determined by student population. This funding crunch has thrust the lives of many public school teachers, administrators, families, and students into crisis.
Lower student enrollment has also meant layoffs for teachers and other school staff, fewer resources and opportunities for kids, and even closing school entirely. Funding for public education comes from several sources: state and local funding streams, as well as federal revenues, which include assistance for special education programming, low-income student aid, vocational programs, and nutrition.
But between states, and even on the county and city level, spending on public education varies greatly, further driving inequities between students—educational, economic, and racial disparities that often persist into adulthood, limiting future opportunities.
While some states spend significantly more per student than others, the U.S. on average lags behind other developed countries in its public education spending. According to the Education Data Initiative, the average amount spent per pupil in the U.S. is $16,993, ranking seventh amongst the 37 other member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. That figure drops to just over $13,000 per pupil for K-12 public schools. At that rate, the accumulated total expenditure for all K-12 schools in the U.S. equals just 3.4% of taxpayer income.
Historically, public education funding has taken major hits after recessions, as states slash education budgets in an effort to tighten their belts. However, the impact of the pandemic on public schools prompted the allocation of emergency federal spending under the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief, or ESSER, funds, counteracting some of the effects of diminished state and local revenue streams. While helpful for the first year or two of the pandemic, studies have shown that the funding was ultimately not enough to negate the learning loss experienced by students.
In order to compare each state's spending on public education, Best Universities used data from the Census Bureau's Annual Survey of School Systems to rank states by their spending per pupil. States with no data available for the 2021 school year were ranked according to their 2020 data and are marked with an asterisk.
