Adequacy cases

The recently debated adequacy case has really hit home. Our district has been using our tax dollars to sue the state for more money. Our district is small, therefore there are fewer people paying into our schools so they need to make every dollar count. No one told us they were going to be spending our money this way. I have only found out recently; after they had already wasted thousands on this case. Statewide, over $4.6 million dollars has been used on this case. Every other district involved with this case should analyze their involvement seriously.

The Show Me Institute, a Missouri based think tank describes the case in more detail. This think tank also recently sponsored a school finance conference that covered areas such as adequacy cases that are emerging all over the country. The scholars presenting their papers

clearly demonstrated more money does not increase achievement. Expert witnesses at the trial also showed that more funding does not increase student achievement. This just goes to show we need to find other ways to improve achievement in our schools. For starters, we need to hold our school boards more accountable---they have wasted our money. The judge ruled against the school districts, saying that Missouri is paying the required amount, actually more than the required 25% of revenues to education. All the districts involved need to convince their school boards not to go through with the appeal. This appeal will only waste more money and most likely end in the same verdict. Or it could go back through the costs and possibly cost millions more.