Putting More Money Into the Classroom
A vital first step towards fixing Texas’s public schools
In Texas, K-12 school spending has increased 173% since 1970, even when controlling for inflation, but student learning and teacher pay remain at troublingly low levels.2
Nationally, only about 40% of the 4.6 million NEW adults added to school districts since 1960 have been teachers. Today, in Texas, only 49% of school staff are classroom teachers.3
Teachers’ paychecks went further nearly 40 years ago than they do today due to rising inflation and flat pay.
Fourth-grade reading scores remain below the national average in Louisiana.4
THE SOLUTION
K-12 Spending Transparency
Education spending transparency allows parents, school boards, and taxpayers to stand up to unaccountable bureaucracies that waste money and fail to educate children.
By creating a window into each purchase that a school makes, states empower parents to advocate for wasting less and putting more money into higher teacher pay and other research-backed solutions that are proven to improve student learning outcomes.5–6
HOW IT WORKS
Texas would set up a public checkbook portal for local schools to publish detailed information about every dollar they spend.
Local officials, parents, and members of the public would have immediate access to information on how every dollar is spent, whether an administrator’s salary, office supplies, or new curricula.
This policy can be even more effective when paired with mandatory training for superintendents, principals, and school board members so that they understand the information and what actions they can take when they find something concerning.
Nationally, the increased number of administrators (172%), support staff (246%), and instructional aides (1438%) has not improved student learning outcomes—and has made it nearly impossible to increase pay that would attract and retain more high-quality teachers.7
THE BOTTOM LINE:
When communities come together, armed with facts about how public-school dollars are spent, parents can hold schools accountable and advocate for proven strategies that improve student outcomes and compensate teachers fairly.
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