As lawmakers mull Indiana°®¶¹app™s next biennial budget °®¶¹app“ a spending plan affecting public school teacher salaries °®¶¹app“ Allen County districts and statewide education organizations said they are hoping for a funding boost.
Gov. Mike Braun this week detailed his first budget proposal. Katie Jenner, state education secretary, said in her weekly newsletter Friday that the proposed 2% increases to K-12 tuition support each of the next two fiscal years is a good beginning.
°®¶¹appœIn what is a very tight budget year, this is a positive starting point for K-12 education, and we must continue to advocate for these tuition support increases over the next few months,°®¶¹app Jenner said.
Increases to tuition support will affect districts differently because various factors contribute to the school funding formula, including enrollment and the number of students requiring extra resources, such as those in poverty.
Funneling more dollars to education increases the likelihood that more districts will benefit, said Terry Spradlin, executive director of the Indiana School Boards Association.
°®¶¹appœA good tuition support increase generates more winners,°®¶¹app he said before Braun°®¶¹app™s budget proposal was revealed.
Pat McCann, East Allen County Schools°®¶¹app™ chief financial officer, said by email that public education funding should at least keep pace with inflation °®¶¹app“ a desire shared by Fort Wayne Community Schools and groups including the Indiana Small and Rural Schools Association, the Indiana Association of School Business Officials and Spradlin°®¶¹app™s organization.
Heather Krebs, the FWCS budgeting director, said the district understands the Legislature must consider various factors while crafting a balanced state budget.
°®¶¹appœFWCS is focused on being responsive to our community and students needs while also maintaining fiscal responsibility,°®¶¹app she said in a statement. °®¶¹appœAt a minimum, we would hope to see the new budget increase at a rate equal or greater than the anticipated rate of inflation, which would allow us to continue to maintain competitive salaries for teachers and staff and to continue our positive momentum to improve on early literacy rates and successfully implement the new graduation requirements via our Schools of Success pathways.°®¶¹app
Northwest Allen County Schools has been particularly vocal about its financial situation as it plans for long-term building and staffing needs. The growing 8,400-student district is eyeing a November operating referendum °®¶¹app“ a ballot measure that would allow NACS to receive proceeds from additional property taxes not subject to tax caps.
Superintendent Wayne Barker in recent months has described the district °®¶¹app“ where the median market home value is $330,800 °®¶¹app“ as woefully underfunded based on the per-student funding it gets in state tuition support and through property taxes. He said NACS receives about $1,000 less per student than the statewide average °®¶¹app“ a shortfall that adds up to about $8 million annually.
°®¶¹appœWe are facing significant challenges in our funds for education and operations in comparison to other Indiana school districts,°®¶¹app Barker said in a statement Monday. °®¶¹appœOur teachers and staff are doing incredible work, but this gap is putting immense pressure on our ability to maintain essential programs and offer competitive compensation for our teachers and support staff.°®¶¹app
Barker and the NACS teachers union have said the collective bargaining agreement approved last fall underscores the financial challenges facing the district. The average raise under the new teachers contract is 1.3%. The agreement also kept minimum base teacher salary at $46,500 °®¶¹app“ the lowest among the four Allen County districts.
More funding would allow NACS to expand the program offerings needed to support academic and career readiness and to attract and retain talent, Barker said.
°®¶¹appœInvesting in our schools is an investment in the future of our community,°®¶¹app he said, °®¶¹appœand I hope our policymakers will see and support this critical need.°®¶¹app
Complex factors
The state dollars Indiana public schools receive are generally based on enrollment and support districts°®¶¹app™ education funds. This budgeting bucket is tied to the classroom, paying for learning materials and curriculum along with such employees as teachers, building administrators, nurses, guidance counselors and special education support staff.
On average, schools statewide last year received $7,270 per student in basic tuition support °®¶¹app“ nearly $430 more than NACS°®¶¹app™ allocation of $6,844, Barker told the school board in October. He said the comparisons were based on state budget simulations.
The superintendent said NACS received the lowest among the four Allen County districts, falling $950 and $691 short of per-student funding received by FWCS and EACS, respectively. Southwest Allen County Schools received $68 more.
But there°®¶¹app™s a reason for the difference.
The state°®¶¹app™s basic tuition support comprises two components, including foundation funding. These dollars should cover the basic level of education for students, officials have said, and the allocations are consistent statewide.
While this base funding addresses adequacy, another piece °®¶¹app“ known as complexity °®¶¹app“ addresses equity, said Scott Bowling, executive director of the Indiana Association of School Business Officials.
A district°®¶¹app™s complexity index is based on the number of families who receive welfare or food stamps or care for foster children. That index is applied to the amount of dollars provided by the school funding formula in complexity funds, said David Marcotte, executive director of the Indiana Urban Schools Association.
He said complexity dollars are critical for student success.
°®¶¹appœIt costs more to educate children of poverty because they need additional support, which means people,°®¶¹app Marcotte said. °®¶¹appœSmaller class sizes by hiring more teachers, adding instructional assistants, additional counselors, tutors, etc., are strategies schools use to support these children. It takes additional funding to do this, and complexity dollars is the funding mechanism to accomplish this purpose.°®¶¹app
According to the state tuition support simulation for fiscal years 2023 through 2025, FWCS°®¶¹app™ complexity index °®¶¹app“ a figure based on a district°®¶¹app™s complex population °®¶¹app“ is the highest in Allen County. It is almost seven times the index applied to NACS.
°®¶¹appœThe additional funding provided by our complexity factor is used for programming to assist with closing educational gaps related to higher poverty rates, ELL (English Language Learners) and special education enrollment factors,°®¶¹app said Krebs, the FWCS budgeting director. °®¶¹appœWhile there is additional state and federal funding for ELL and special education, the funding only covers a portion of the expenses.°®¶¹app
Marcotte said his organization, which has 37 member districts including FWCS, has been asking the state to update the complexity index formula so it would be more responsive to the changes in districts°®¶¹app™ populations. Under the existing rules, the complexity index is based on information as of Oct. 1 prior to the budget biennium and remains static for two years.
°®¶¹appœWe feel the complexity index should be applied to each (average daily membership) period, just like schools receive funding according to their enrollment twice each year, usually September and February,°®¶¹app Marcotte said. °®¶¹appœComplexity may be less or more at each ADM period, but we feel accuracy is important when it comes to per student funding.°®¶¹app
