Equity and Opportunity in Education: The Road to the

American Dream

Ben Scafidi

Kennesaw State UniversitySenior Fellow: Georgia Public Policy Foundation and

the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice

Outline

• Do Georgians support giving parents more choice over where their children attend school?

• Is school choice good for students?

• Does school choice harm state and local budgets?

• Are there opportunities for greater school choice in Georgia?

Georgians Support School Choice

May 2014 Poll of 1,000 Georgia Adults

(Specific questions are in the appendix at the end of this power point)

Support for Tax Credit Scholarships by Party

Democrats Republicans Independents

67.2%71.5% 71.5%

26.9%23.9% 23.3%

Strongly or Somewhat Favor

Strongly or Somewhat Oppose

Support for Universal Access to Scholarships by Party

Democrats Republicans Independents

64.5%

74.8%68.0%

32.1%

22.3%

30.6%

Strongly or Somewhat FavorStrongly or Somewhat Oppose

Increase Cap to $100 million

Strongly or Somewhat Favor Strongly or Somewhat Oppose

61.8%

29.1%

An "education savings account" – often called an ESA – allows parents to take their child out of a public school, and receive a

payment into a government-authorized savings account with restricted, but multiple uses. Parents can then use these

funds to pay for private school tuition, virtual education programs, private tutoring or save for future college expenses.

In general, do you favor or oppose this kind of “savings account system”? [PROBE:] Would you say strongly or

somewhat favor/oppose?

Education Savings Accounts

Strongly or Somewhat Favor Strongly or Somewhat Oppose

67.8%

27.2%

9

59%

YES

"YES" Vote on the 2012 Georgia Charter Schools Amendment

Parental Choice is Good for Students

http://www.edchoice.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/2013-4-A-Win-Win-Solution-WEB.pdf

School Choice Appears to be “Win-Win”

• 11 out of 12 “random assignment” studies find that all or some students who receive school choice opportunities have higher academic outcomes

• The other study finds no impact

• 22 out of 23 studies find that academic outcomes in public schools improve as a result of school choice

• The other study finds no impact

• Biggest benefits will be in terms of high school graduation rates, success in college, and other outcomes like safety, values.

• www.edchoice.org/morethanscores

• No study shows that students are harmed from school choice. Not one.

School Choice Does Not Harm State or Local

Budgets

Just use a little care in the bill design.

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It is straightforward to design a school choice program that saves the state money …

Make state funds that follow the child less than average state spending per student.

• The fiscal effect of a given school choice program on local school district budgets is more complicated than it is for state budgets.

• Specifically, school choice programs that allow school districts to retain funding for any fixed costs would not harm the fiscal health of public schools or decrease resources available to students who remain in public schools.

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All Costs are Either Fixed or Variable

Total Expenditures Per Student

Fixed Costs Variable Costs

15

- Capital Expenditures- Interest- General Administration- School Administration- Operations & Maintenance- Transportation- "Other" Support Services- Instruction- Student Support- Instructional Staff Support - Enterprise Operations- Food Service

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How to Divine Which of These Costs are Fixed?

• If a significant number of students left a public school district for any reason from one year to the next, is it feasible for the district to reduce the costs of these items commensurate with the decrease in its student population?

• Using 4 school districts in Georgia, I analyzed how they were able to reduce expenses when they lost students for reasons not related to school choice.

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Fixed Costs (in short-run)

- Capital Expenditures- Interest- General Admininstration - School Admininstration - Operations & Maintenance - Transportation- "Other" Support Services

Variable Costs

(in short-run)

- Instruction - Student Support - Instructional Staff Support - Enterprise Operations- Food Service

Money that follows the child that is less than this

amount improves the finances of school

districts--even in the very short-run. 18

Results• In FY 2009, Georgia public schools spent an average of

$11,468 per student.

• Using the methodology in my report, 65.5% of this $11,468 are short-run variable costs ($7,507).

• The other $3,961 per student are short-run fixed costs that states could let school districts retain when they lost students via school choice.

• In the long-run, all costs are variable.19

Thus, any school choice program where $7,507 per student or less (on average) follows a child to the school of his or her choice improves the fiscal situation of a public school district, on average. And, students who remain in public schools

would have more resources devoted to their education.

20

Keep in Mind …

By letting school districts retain funds for students they no longer serve,

THEY WILL BE GETTING PAID FOR STUDENTS THEY NO LONGER SERVE!!!!

How many other industries have that “business” model?

21

If school districts say they cannot reduce costs when they lose students, then…

• They are suggesting that all of their costs are fixed.

If that were really true, then …

• They should not get extra funding when they add students—because all of their costs are fixed.

• You could use the midterm adjustment to fund scholarships for students.

http://www.edchoice.org/research/the-fiscal-effects-of-school-choice-programs-on-public-school-districts/

22

55%

98%89%

108%

Students Total Staff Teachers All OtherStaff

Georgia Staffing Surge, FY 1987 to 2013

Opportunities for Expanded School Choice in Georgia

• Equitable funding for charter public schools

• Ensure every child has access to diverse high school options:

• career academy or dual enrollment at a technical college

• 4-year college coursework through dual enrollment or virtual means

• Raise the cap on the tax credit scholarship program

• Education Savings Accounts

Appendix

The 2014 Georgia Education Survey

• Funded by the Economics of Education Policy Center at Georgia College

• Survey conducted by Braun Research, Princeton, NJ

• Nonpartisan polling firm

• Member of AAPOR

• Margin of Error = +/- 3.1%

• Results weighted to match Georgia’s demographics

The state of Georgia allows individual taxpayers, married couples, and corporate taxpayers to redirect some of their state income tax payments to student scholarship organizations. These student scholarship organizations provide scholarships to public school students whose parents wish to enroll

them in private school. This tax credit scholarship program, also called Georgia’s Education Expense Credit Program, has a statewide donation limit of

$58 million. Have you heard of this program?

A “tax-credit scholarship system” allows parents the option of sending their child to the school of their choice, whether that school is public or private,

including both religious and non-religious schools. In general, do you favor or oppose a tax-credit scholarship system? [PROBE:] Would you say strongly or

somewhat favor/oppose?

To what extent do you agree or disagree with each of the following statements? [INTERVIEWER PROBE:] Would you say strongly or

somewhat agree/disagree?

[ROTATE ORDER IN WHICH A AND B ARE ASKED.]

Tax credit scholarships should be available to all families, regardless of incomes.

Tax credit scholarships should only be available to families based on

financial need.

The maximum of $58 million in donations to Georgia student scholarship

organizations was used up in the first three weeks of this year. Would you favor

or oppose raising this maximum amount of donations to $100 million for 2015?

[PROBE:] Would you say strongly or somewhat favor/oppose?