Thousands of Colorado schoolchildren headed back to classrooms last month, and hundreds of teachers promptly headed to Wal-Mart to buy school supplies with cash from their own pockets.
That, proponents of Amendment 39 say, is just one of the reasons why school districts need to pour at least 65 percent of their budgets into classrooms.
Of course, the start of school also means filling up those yellow school buses with high-priced fuel. For a district like Jefferson County, whose fleet of buses traverse 25,000 miles a day – essentially the circumference of the Earth – that’s a lot of dough. (Jeffco spent $1.5 million on fuel in 2004, before last year’s big gas hike forced them to bump their budget another $160,000.)
That, opponents of Amendment 39 say, is just one of the reasons why districts need flexibility in how they budget their money.
The debate over education funding usually pits folks who say schools need more cash against the folks who say there’s already plenty, but it’s just not spent properly. But this year, they’re giving us a number: 65 percent.
If approved, Amendment 39 would require school districts to spend 65 percent of their budgets on classroom expenses, including teacher salaries, books, supplies, librarians and even field trips. It does not include non-instructional items, such as transportation costs, school nurses or breakfast or lunch programs.
The “65 percent Solution,” as it’s called by supporters, is part of a national movement to force school districts to spend more money on classroom instruction and less on administrative and other costs. Supporters say just getting to 65 percent is not a magic bullet to improve achievement levels but point to statistics suggesting that states that already spend that much – including Massachusetts, Minnesota and New Hampshire – have some of the top national scores on math and reading tests.
Colorado ranks 47th out of 50 states in the percentage of actual dollars going toward classroom instruction, according to figures from the National Center for Educational Statistics, or NCES.
(The figures do not including expenses for librarians and libraries, which would be included in Amendment 39.)
Only a handful of Colorado’s 178 school districts now meet the 65 percent threshold.
If passed, school districts could gradually work their way to 65 percent at a clip of 2 percentage points a year. If they don’t, there is no penalty. And school districts also could seek a waiver from the governor if they don’t think it’s possible to reach 65 percent.
Opponents say Amendment 39 strips budget control away from local districts. Supporters say it gives locals complete control over how they want to spend the 65 percent, saying the extra money could go toward bring arts and music back into classrooms or funding merit pay for teachers.
Voters will also see a Referendum J on their ballots, referred by state lawmakers. It also requires 65 percent of money be spent in classrooms, but has a much broader definition of instructional support expenses.
If both measures pass, some experts say Amendment 39’s provisions would take precedence since it amends the state constitution. However, other observers say if both pass, the issue likely will be decided by the courts.
