State lawmakers are beginning a two-year study examining education in South Dakota. They plan to establish several areas of focus, and one is likely to be the connection between school funding and student achievement.
Members of the legislative planning committee want to improve educational outcomes in state schools. The 11-member panel begins that process with an in-depth examination of how South Dakota funds K-12 education. It includes details about the current funding mechanism and its history to deep analysis of property tax assessments.
"Why are you sitting here over the next two years? It’s not just so you can give schools more money. There’s a reason for that. But, hopefully, we all keep in mind why we do what we do," South Dakota Secretary of Education Melody Schopp says. "That’s because, whether you’re an educator or a parent or a legislator or a Secretary of Education, what we really want is kids to graduate college, career, and life ready. And that’s the whole purpose of why you fund schools."
Education stakeholders provide public testimony. Legislators have their own impressions of what quality education looks like in South Dakota. Some want greater emphasis on providing schools and teachers with financial power, but others say they resist connecting school funding directly to student achievement.