Senator Eliot Shapleigh - El Paso, Texas

Despite claims by some conservative leaders and policy groups, statistical evidence shows that money does matter in education. Using data provided by the Texas Education Agency (TEA), the El Paso Times found that school districts that spend more on students received better state accountability rankings. Specifically, "districts that received the highest TEA ranking, 'exemplary,' spent an average of $1,534 more per student on instruction than districts rated 'academically unacceptable.'" Click here to read the full article.

Similar data from TEA shows that money matters when hiring qualified teachers. The charts below compare property-wealthy districts with property-poor districts. Extra money allows property-wealthy districts to pay their teachers more, which means that they can hire more teachers with advanced degrees.

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In addition to providing more resources, the El Paso Times also found that only 34 percent of students in exemplary school districts were from poor families, compared to 74 percent in academically unacceptable schools. Students in property-wealthy districts tend to be less expensive to educate, while districts with high concentrations of low-income students need additional financial resources for the educational challenges they face, such as providing more instruction time and specialized programs such as bilingual education, recruiting and training highly-effective teachers, and purchasing the most up-to-date school materials.

This issue was at the heart of the school finance case before the Texas Supreme Court. In its decision, the court noted that there was "an impending constitutional violation" in regard to education funding and that "the public education system has reached the point where continued improvement will not be possible absent significant change, whether that change take the form of increased funding, improved efficiencies, or better methods of education."

In Austin, state leaders claim devotion to education. Yet a study by the National Education Association released last month found that Texas was the only state in the nation where state funding on education declined year to year. Texas dropped from 36th to 40th in the nation in average spending per student.

State leaders claim devotion to equity. Yet a study by the Education Trust, a policy group that supports President Bush's No Child Left Behind, found that Texas spends nearly $600 less per child in the highest-poverty districts and $1,200 less per child in the highest-minority districts. Policy director Ross Wiener stated, "A lot of standards and accountability came out of Texas, but fairness in funding hasn't followed. Lawmakers need to realize that all children growing up in the state of Texas need to have a high-quality education. We know children growing up in poverty start with a disadvantage. Texas education policies compound those disadvantages."

Texans know and want better for their children. They want a prosperous future for their children and they know that means providing them with a high-quality education. Better policies, better bills, and better priorities are what our great state and children deserve.