Parents, educators, and school leaders in Idaho Falls are calling for a simplified school funding model based on enrollment, not attendance. About 45 people gathered at the College of Eastern Idaho to discuss the issue with state superintendent Debbie Critchfield and Senate Education Committee Chair Dave Lent.

Current Funding Model

The current funding formula, which is based largely on average daily attendance, has not had a significant update since 1994. Several speakers at the meeting stressed that the attendance-based model forces districts to predict the future, making budgets uncertain because core costs stay fixed, even when daily attendance drops.

Participants also repeatedly called for weighted funding for students who require additional services, such as special education students, English language learners, low-income and gifted learners, career-technical education students, and students in smaller rural schools.

Need for Change

Meridian Medical Arts Charter High School Executive Director Benjamin Merrill said that the formula should be simple and easy to explain. "If the formula takes longer than five minutes to explain, it is probably too complex," he said. Pocatello teacher Marcy Curr added that the attendance-based model is unfair to schools, saying, "Businesses cannot function like that, and time and time again we hear schools need to be competitive, schools need to act like businesses. Then treat us like businesses. Stop with this attendance-based thing."

Critchfield has pushed for adding weights to the formula and funding students based on unique characteristics, like demographics and learning ability. The meeting was the second stop in Critchfield’s listening tour, with two more sessions set for this month. A proposed funding model is expected later this year.

Original reporting: Idaho Education News — read the source article.