State needs another $196 mil. to hit national pupil spending

Friday, Sept. 19, 1997 | 11:06 a.m.

The Nevada Legislature would have to commit almost another $200 million to bring the state on a par with the national per pupil spending average.

According to a report released Thursday by the Census Bureau, Nevada spent $4,658 for each pupil in 1994, the most recent year for which figures are available. That put Nevada at $705 less per student than the national average. Sixteen states spent less money per student than Nevada.

Doug Thunder, deputy superintendent for public instruction, said the Legislature would have to allocate $196 million more dollars to equal the national per pupil average of $5,363.

"I believe we should move up the scale," Thunder said. "I don't have a specific amount but I think it should at least reflect the national average."

Public schools in New Jersey, New York, Alaska and Connecticut spent more money per student than schools anywhere else in the country, according to the survey, which was compiled by the Commerce Department using Census Bureau data from the most recent year available.

New Jersey spent an average of $8,902 on each kindergarten through 12th-grade student in 1994, New York shelled out $8,162 per student, Alaska paid $7,890, and Connecticut spent $7,629.

Utah sat at the bottom of the list, spending an average of $3,280 per student. Mississippi spent slightly more - $3,423 - just behind Idaho, $3,602, and Alabama, $3,777.

Public schools are financed primarily with local money, usually property taxes.

The figures listed in the survey take into account everything from teacher salaries to wages for cafeteria workers and costs to run after-school and special education programs. They do not include capital outlays, or money used to build classrooms or make repairs.

Some education officials cautioned parents against using a school's per-pupil expenditure as the sole barometer of a child's educational success.

"You can't draw a direct correlation of expenditures to achievement," said Chris Pipho, who tracks education trends and legislation for the Denver-based group, The Education Commission of the States.

Pipho said other factors include the level of education completed by a student's parents, a family's income level and whether the student comes from a household with one or two parents.

The question of just how much per pupil spending affects student achievement is one that Thunder said is difficult to answer.

"Everybody's wrestling with that question," he said. "I don't think for every additional dollar you spend you're going to see an increase in student achievement.

"On the other side of the coin, if you reduce the amount of spending, that's not going to help student achievement. You have to look at how that funding is spent."

Pipho also pointed out that a hefty portion of a school's costs goes toward payroll expenses. He said states generally spend between 60 to 70 percent of their budget on salaries, not just for teachers, but support staff including aides, custodial help, bus drivers and cafeteria workers.

In contrast, Nevada spends 80-90 percent of its budget on salaries, Thunder said.