Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, December 17, 1993 TAG: 9312170070
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LAURA WILLIAMSON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Long
Virginia Education Association President Rob Jones said the state must spend at least that much more - and localities another $12.5 million - to bring an adequate education to Virginia's children.
Under a three-tiered school-spending formula being proposed by the education association, the state would spend as much as $802 million more on schools and localities would spend up to $32 million more. The money would come from increased taxes or cutting other programs, Jones said.
"The Virginia school finance system is broken and it needs to be fixed," he said. "The annual Band-Aid approach that has been used over the last several years simply won't work."
In April, the education association proposed rewriting the state's school-spending formula to reflect more accurately the cost of educating Virginia's 1 million public school students. The formula provides three tiers of spending: a basic level of education paid for with state and local money; a second level that provides state matching funds to localities that want to do more; and a third, uncapped level that uses local money only.
Thursday, the association released the details of how that formula would affect each of 133 school divisions - all of which would benefit - and how much it would cost to implement. The first tier would add $517.5 million to the $5 billion already being spent on schools through state and local funding. Level two would bring the increase to $834 million.
Under a separate formula for school construction, the education association proposes spending an additional $188 million.
During a news conference at the association's headquarters, Jones said the proposed formula also would require the state to rewrite its "standards of quality," which outline the minimum education guaranteed to all students.
The "standards of quality," he said, look more like "standards of mediocrity."
For example, the state pays for 60 teachers for every 1,000 students, Jones said, while the average locality hires 70 teachers for every 1,000 pupils.
The state easily could afford to pay more for education if it raised taxes, he said, pointing out that Virginia is the 12th wealthiest state in the country but ranks 43rd in the amount of taxes it raises for education.
"It's unfortunate that the answer always seems to be . . . raise taxes or cut services," said Ken Stroupe, spokesman for Gov.-elect George Allen.
Rather than rewrite the school-spending formula, it might be better to streamline the Department of Education so that more money goes directly to the classroom and less into bureaucracy, Stroupe said.
Allen's education transition team and a "blue ribbon strike force" are looking for ways to reduce government waste, he said.
"The VEA is not looking at all of the options," Stroupe said.
Secretary of Education Karen Peterson laughed when she heard the price tag for the education group's formula.
"That's pretty incredible," she said - and also unrealistic.
Peterson said the state already must find another $350 million to pay for a 2 percent projected increase in student enrollment next year.
"It basically takes all of the resources just to do that," she said.
She dismissed the idea of raising taxes while the state is recovering from a recession, particularly in light of more defense cutbacks and a proposed federal tobacco tax that would hit Virginia harder than other states.
"You can't look at something just in isolation," she said.
On the other hand, said Peterson, the state and the education association are not as far apart as it might seem on improvements to public education.
Both see the need for revising the standards of quality, putting more money into school construction - although the state would like this to be in the form of loans - and reducing class sizes.
"I think that we want the same end product as the VEA," Peterson said.
Jones said the association's formula also would shrink educational disparities between the state's rich and poor school districts. But even the richest of localities would see an increase in state funding.
Falls Church, which spends $9,139 per pupil - more than any other Virginia locality - would see a 19 percent increase in state funding under the association formula, or an additional $261,169.
In contrast, South Boston, which spends $3,819 per pupil - the least of any locality - would see a 30.8 percent increase in state funding, or an extra $1.2 million. However, it also would have to cough up an additional $265,970 - 19 percent more than its current share - from local money.
Under the association's plan, increases in state funding would range from 1.9 percent in Highland County to 41.3 percent in Harrisonburg, with local shares increasing from 0 percent in the majority of school divisions to 27.8 percent in Prince Edward County. Many localities in Southwest Virginia - some of the poorest school divisions in the state - would receive between 20 percent and 30 percent more state funding.
That's because the formula rewards localities that already spend as much as they can on schools while requiring those that don't to spend more, said Ralph Shotwell, the education group's director of finance and research.
Jones pointed to Franklin County as a locality "of some wealth" that fails to make "an appropriate local effort" to pay for education. The county, he said, should tax property near Smith Mountain Lake at a higher rate to increase its education spending.
Franklin County School Finance Director Lee Cheatham objected to the characterization, adding that the county recently raised education spending by nearly $1.5 million. He had no objection, however, to the formula being proposed by the association.
"Do you mean the state's going to give us another $4.8 million if we spend $258,000? That's fantastic," he said. "I'm sure we would recommend that."
Many local school divisions - as well as state legislators - are rallying behind the group's plan, Jones said. However, he would not give names.
"It probably would not be to our advantage right now to start naming names, because the list is growing," he said.
Jones said teachers all over the state have been briefed on the proposed formula and will lobby their local governing bodies and legislators to get behind it.
He said the proposed formula could be phased in over several years to lessen the economic impact.
But with Virginia teachers' salaries already $3,000 below the national average and an aging population that will rely more and more on a shrinking work force, he hopes the state will do something soon to improve the quality of public education.
"I feel a great sense of urgency on this," he said.
by CNB