This article was published at The Washington Policy Center on Oct 6, 2026: https://www.washingtonpolicy.org/publications/detail/is-mccleary-really-to-blame-for-washingtons-budget-woes During a recent debate on repealing the state income tax, opponents of I-645 claimed that the state budget's rapid expansion is driven by the Supreme Court’s McCleary decision. K–12 funding has grown rapidly since that decision, but since 2019, spending on everything else has expanded nearly three times as fast, accounting for nearly three-quarters of total state budget growth. The Supreme Court formally ended its oversight of the McCleary decision in June 2018. McCleary enforced the state’s … [Read more...]
K-12 School Funding Report Sept 2026
The article in this link provides details about funding per student broken out by state. Please note that it shows WA State at almost $22,000/student/year. Read the article for full details. Below we share examples of what you will see. Some of the charts are interactive so reading the original article may be helpful. Article USA Facts … [Read more...]
Opinion: ‘It may be time for McCleary 2.0’
Dick Rylander provides an analysis of the Battle Ground School District’s November 2026 EP&O Levy Dick Rylander for Clark County Today This article is my analysis based on my research and interpretations. It contains a significant amount of detail and numbers. As such, if you need clarifications please reach out to someone whose opinion you trust and ask for their assistance. Every attempt has been made to be accurate and, in the case of projections or estimates, to incorporate information gleaned from conversations. If there are factual errors please notify me. On Thursday July 16, 2026 the BGSD Superintendent (Shelly Whitten) presented a levy proposal to the School Board … [Read more...]
McCleary’s promise and Washington’s K–12 reality
Published at ClarkCountyToday.com Jan 20, 2026 https://www.clarkcountytoday.com/opinion/opinion-mcclearys-promise-and-washingtons-k-12-reality/ When the Washington Supreme Court decided McCleary v. State of Washington in 2012, it delivered a landmark ruling: the state had failed its “paramount duty” under Article IX of the Washington Constitution to make “ample provision for the education of all children.” The word “ample,” the Court emphasized, meant more than adequate. It meant full, sufficient, and dependable support for basic education, funded primarily by the State rather than by unstable local levies. The ruling was legally sound and morally compelling. Yet more than a … [Read more...]
Goodhart’s Law Explains Education Decay
An article from Intellectual Takeout: https://intellectualtakeout.org/2023/01/goodharts-law-education-decay/ Everywhere in education, you see incentives at work. The incentives, though, are so far removed from the actual goals of education that they produce perverse results. Goodhart’s Law is usually stated, “When a measure becomes a target, it ceases to be a good measure.” Economics textbooks often use the allegory of a maker of nails, who receives word that his measure of success at producing nails will be based on the number of nails made. He retools his factory, adjusts his resource use, and produces as many nails as possible, even though many are too thin, or small, or bent … [Read more...]
Empower Students Through Ownership: How School-Wide Projects Ignite Confidence and Engagement
Today Emily, at www.mightymoms.net shares her newest article When students are given meaningful roles in shaping their school’s initiatives, something powerful happens: engagement soars, confidence strengthens, and learning feels real. Educators who create structures where students own parts of school-wide projects — whether creative showcases, communications teams, or community events — see classrooms transform into ecosystems of agency and collaboration. Quick Takeaways Student ownership turns passive participation into active leadership. Real-world collaboration, like managing school events or designing communications, develops vital life and career … [Read more...]
Enhancement Levys and their burden
These examples are in Northern WA State but are relevant. Yelm Community Schools has more than 3x the seniors over age 65 poverty compared to Bethel's School District and 31% higher seniors over age 65 poverty compared to North Thurston. Yelm taxpayers have an elderly population that needs protection so they can stay in their homes. According to this data, Yelm Community Schools had 92,014 less population, 15,106 less FTE students, and 390 less FTE teachers than Bethel School District. According to this data, Yelm Community Schools had 79,119 less population, 9,089 less FTE students, and 255 less FTE teachers than North Thurston School District. Home … [Read more...]
School boards should focus budget deliberations on student outcomes, financial sustainability
From the Brookings Institute Please get a thermos of coffee or tea. The article is long and detailed so you will need some time. As school districts enter one of their most challenging budget cycles in recent memory, all eyes should be on school boards. That’s because the nation’s roughly 13,000 local school boards are the ones who generally own the fiduciary responsibility for spending $700 billion in K-12 public education funds. They’re the ones who sign their names to decisions about what to prioritize when funds are tight, and ultimately where to cut and what to spare. Yet, findings from our research suggest most school board trustees are simply going through the motions when … [Read more...]
Hockinson SD District 2 Sherrie Jones
A list of 12 questions was sent to each candidate with the offer to publish their responses unedited. Ms. Jones chose not to participate. She’s running unopposed. Just in case you want to contact her and ask some questions her contact info is in the voters pamphlet reproduced below. If you learn anything please share with us. ______________________________________________________________ Q1: Given the poor student test scores, what are your proposals to improve learning and outcomes? Q2: Given that an estimated 50% of the entire state budget goes to K-12 education, what are your thoughts about improving efficiencies in local spending? Q3: What’s your position on Parental Rights? Q4: … [Read more...]
How are public schools in the US funded?
This information comes from USAFacts which is funded by Steve Balmer. However, when you look at their data do so with a critical eye. They lump information together that needs to be parsed to be useful. Today we explore the US in general and then finish up on Washington State. It's also important to note that their data is for 2021/2022 which means it's 3 years old and the numbers have only gotten bigger. Now for your reading pleasure... In the 2021–2022 school year, the most recent year of available data, about 44.1% of public school funding came from state sources like income and retail taxes, and another 42.2% came from local sources like property taxes. The federal government … [Read more...]
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