I saw an article the other day that made me do a double-take. It said the school budget for Blaine County was going to be 92.8M (million) dollars for 2011. The number caught my eye because I also remembered reading that the Twin Falls schools budget was around 45M. I asked a simple question…how many kids are in each district? I guessed Twin Falls to be about 3 times larger. The actual numbers are Twin Falls around 7,400 and Blaine County around 3,200. Then, I did a simple math calculation….divide the total budget by the number of students to see how much each district spends per student. This opened a whole can of worms…
I found a couple of things early…the information is readily available and the data is fascinating. I don’t have the inclination to write a 100 page expose here, so I am keeping this as simple as possible, and using nice round numbers. The objective is not to skewer any school district – they have the right to spend whatever amount their local citizenry will tolerate. The objective is to shine a little light on the value of a dollar.
The State of Idaho average spent per student is around $8,500 per year. Take Twin Falls at 45M divide by 7,400 students = $6,100 per year. Meridian School District averages $9,200. Coeur D’Alene averages around $8,000. Idaho Falls district 93 averages $5,200.
Blaine County 92.8M divide by 3,200 students = $29,000.
Check my math. Go ahead…I’ll wait.
I’m sure there are some very fine reasons why Blaine County spends nearly 6X what Idaho Falls spends and almost 5X what Twin Falls spends. I bet the Blaine County school district budget wonks could come up with thousands of justifications for such expenditures. I’m sure the issue is sooooo complicated that a numbskull like myself could never understand the intricacies and difficulties of such a unique area.
One thing I do know, based on a little bit of research, is that the students aren’t getting a superior education for that much money. In fact, Blaine County students produce rather average test scores, which you might find surprising based on the air of superiority one runs into when attending arts festivals and consuming European cheeses and wines amongst their parents. Twin Falls and Meridian High students score higher in Reading and Science. Coeur D’Alene, Bonneville, and Eagle High students score higher in Reading, Science, Language, and Math. Check my facts at http://www.greatschools.org/idaho/
That’s right. You can provide a better education using less dollars…despite whatever whining objections you hear from politicians. Yes – I do believe education is a priority that should be well funded and even improved. But, as you can see, the improvements are rarely justified by simply spending more money. More money, more money, more money is not the only solution…it is, however, the only solution preferred by the lazy, the corrupt, and the uninformed.
To my Blaine County readers (all 3 of you): It is time for you to stand up to your beliefs and begin living up the ideals of the Democrat Party…You have overwhelmingly voted for Obama and all Democrats for a long time. It is time for you to “share the wealth” and start redistributing your tax dollars in a MORE FAIR and equitable manner. While the rest of the School Districts in Idaho have cut their budgets, you have increased yours by 18M next year. That was wimpy – you should have increased it by 100 million dollars !! I realize Obama has convinced all of you that you can spend your way out of debt, so listen to him: You must all start spending even more…way more.
Or, how about this: Trim your budget to the Idaho State average of $8,500 per student (around 27M), and send the extra money (66M) to the general fund to be redistributed to the rest of Idaho. It is only fair and decent, and it is the right thing to do. Stop being so greedy and stop saying “no” all the time. Other school districts have a right to your money. You are living way above your means. You are consuming too much of everyone’s resources. The other school districts are harming the eco-system because they don’t have enough money for sustainable earth-friendly projects. Spending all that money only on yourselves is draconian, lacks gravitas, takes food out of the mouths of kids in Shoshone, and shows an extreme lack of compassion. You should work together with the rest of the schools in a more reasonable and equitable fashion that promotes a sense of goodwill and fosters a greater understanding and mutual respect with your peers.
Oh…shoot…that’s right, I almost forgot. Liberals only like to spend OTHER PEOPLE’S MONEY…not their own. What was I thinking?? Never mind all that stuff I just wrote…
Sources:
http://www.greatschools.org/idaho/
http://www.blaineschools.org/Departments/Finance/10-11Budget.pdf
http://www.meridianschools.org/Community/AnnualBudget/Pages/AnnualBudget.aspx
http://www.cdaschools.org/district_profile
http://www3.d93.k12.id.us/district-annual-budgets.aspx
http://www.mtexpress.com/index2.php?ID=2005127754
http://www.mtexpress.com/index2.php?ID=2005131760
http://www.tfsd.k12.id.us/tfsd/Your_District/yourdistrict.html
http://www.meridianschools.org/Community/AnnualBudget/Documents/2009-2010%20Annual%20Budget[1].pdf
