Census: Nation's Public Schools in the Red

WASHINGTON -- The nation's public school systems are sinking further into debt, the Census Bureau reported Thursday. They were saddled with over $250 billion in red ink in the 2002-03 school year, up 11 percent from the previous year.

Many districts are stuck with huge debts to pay for new buildings to accommodate a surging student population. Nationally, enrollment grew slightly to 47.6 million, up 1 percent.

Other districts have struggled to find money to fix older buildings or hire more teachers.

The data, the latest available, also reflect the first full school year after the No Child Left Behind Act was signed into law in January 2002. The sweeping reforms aimed at upgrading school performance are a cornerstone of President Bush's education policy.
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Democratic leaders angry with the first go-round of the education law say schools have not received enough money and that Bush's latest budget proposal would make it worse by cutting overall spending.

http://www.newsday.com/news/politics/wire/sns-ap-school-spending,0,3343997.story?coll=sns-ap-politics-headlines

iraq is getting lots and lots of new schools

Pay attention folks! Many public school districts in this country are facing tremendous financial losses. Charter schools are taking students away, NCLB is incredibly expensive and way under funded, and right wing state legislatures are refusing to increase funding for schools. The consequences are beyond dire. Class sizes will be drastically increased, there will be little or no money to maintain facilities or purchase supplies and school district employees can forget about raises and will start facing pay cuts.

Many of the teachers working today will be eligible for retirement within the next few years. And they WILL retire rather than work in underfunded schools.

I know I am biased, but I think this is probably one of the worst problems facing our country today.

here in Indiana, Charter schools are getting huge increases in funding, while public schools are getting cuts to funding.

Tests scores don't pan out for Charter schools, though. They are also taking fewer non-English speaking and Special needs students than the public schools. Amazing! :grr:

Take a look: http://www.ista-in.org/sam.cfm?xnode=3034

My school is growing, and we are facing losing 20 teachers next year. Others are throwing around numbers much higher. The class size numbers I have heard are around *35* :wow:

You are right, it is getting very ugly. :(

it also loses revenue. Each of those students who transfers to a charter school has a pot of money attached.

The public school district where I teach has lost 6000 kids to charter schools in the last 5 years. That is 20% of our kids. The consequences have been devastating.

to take standardized tests, and IF they CHOOSE to take them, they do not have to report them. That's the way it is here in Wisconsin. Also, schools in rural areas get screwed. I teach in a rural school district in north central Wisconsin, and we have a superintendent who lies, and i suspect is taking money from us. We have a neandrathal school baord, but our ex-union president (went to a more teacher-friendly school district) lives in the district, and is running for school board here. Election is in about 3 weeks. I pray she gets it, and it looks pretty good. Please send your good thoughts her way.

...Bush and sent republicans majorities to both houses with all this crap going on in their own communities. The report is out-of-date (2002-03) we are in 2004-05 and I know for a fact that the situation has gotten worse in my area of Florida. The entire public school system is going to implode pretty quickly if the red ink keeps flowing and my guess is that the problem is at least 25% worse this FY as it was in 2002-03. Plus our kids and grand kids are getting less education. This is bad. Bush's budget for 2006 calls for greater cuts to education and that will bring more pressure on states to cut back or go further into debt.

that the federal education budget has actually increased by a jillion percent since shrub took office. What they don't tell you is that most of that budget stays in D.C. and does NOT reach schools or kids.

The next time a freeper makes this claim, ask him how much of that increase is heading toward your local school district.

'most ' of the folks i work w voted for kerry but some in my school voted *. the notices come from the school board about the budgets and STILL they think * ( and ARNIE ) will save them.

deciding which 8 elementery schools to closed ue to a huge budge defecit.

...to destroy the public school system. They want only private schools so only the moneyed class can afford to educate their children. After all what use has he who sweeps up behind the elephant for education.

Their goal is for a two class system. Them, and everyone else.

They have reached their goal. and the american people aided them in it.

Man, what a different world that would be today. I might even be teaching now.

If only... :nuke::mad::nuke:

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