Winooski School Board member Alex Yin is working with a statewide student coalition to ensure that all Vermont students have access to the education they deserve — and draw attention to an education funding system they say is highly inequitable.
In 1997, Vermont created a formula for school district funding distribution. Its primary goal was to disconnect property wealth and education funding. The calculation begins with a base amount for each pupil and allows structured weights for each student who is considered “disadvantaged”. For the most part, the formula has remained stagnant since that time.
“This formula does not account for specific student needs,” said Yin. Vermont children come from disparate backgrounds. From students who need support with clothing, food or housing, to students who need the support of a special education program, each district carries its own set of inequities.
As Vermont’s most diverse town, Winooski has a unique set of inequities. Many students come from homes that do not read or write in English, meaning families rely on the school district for translation services, information and English education.
The district’s English Language Learners program assists with translation for parents and guided curriculums which give students the opportunity to strengthen their English skills and still learn the same information as their peers.
However, translators, multi-lingual educators, and specialized books are not free. Programs like this one are specially designed to meet the needs of students in their district. Yin says the State of Vermont has not yet recognized these inequities in the way they distribute funding.
The state can distribute funds in a less restrictive and more equitable way than the federal government, Yin said.
“We spend this money because we want to give students the same experience as their counterparts. Federal funds do not allow you to interact with the communities in the same way. They are restrictive in a way that is not based on empirical evidence,” said Yin.
He also notes that categorical aid, funding that is specifically marked for one need, is restrictive and can gridlock a school’s ability to serve their students properly.
In response to this need, researchers from the University of Vermont created a new formula that has the ability to examine the weights and barriers on students across the state. The goal is to better understand how funds should be distributed. Tammy Kolbe, researcher and professor at UVM, aims to account for the full spectrum of student needs.
As noted on the Coalition for Vermont Student Equity website, the coalition advocates that this year, the Vermont legislature adopt the recommendations of the Pupil Weighting Factors Report, which found that, “The cost of serving students with complex needs is a significant burden in many school districts, especially those that are located in rural communities that have been most affected by the opioid crisis. Additional financial and programmatic support, in the form of targeted and specific categorical funding, coupled with technical assistance, is a potential policy response to this growing need.”
“By finally correcting the flawed formula, districts that have been suffering for decades under the incorrect weights will finally have their fair share of an equitably distributed education fund,” the coalition states on their website.
“Ultimately”, Alex said, “If we do this well, we will have students that feel cared for and students that are proud alumni, students that become long-term servants and constituents in the community.”
