Dive Brief:
- A new University of California-Berkeley study reports increasing stress on low-income districts' budgets due to a zero-sum deficit stemming from voter-approved statewide bonds that had previously totaled $35 billion.
- Jeff Vincent of the Center for Cities and Schools tells Capital Public Radio that half of the state’s districts were proving unable to “go it alone” without the state funding.
- Overall, the study found, wealthier school districts with higher property values received a “disproportionate share of state bond money” at the same time they obtained additional local funds for routine building maintenance.
Dive Insight:
California isn’t the only state with schools facing disrepair due to slashed education budgets, though Los Angeles has a few particularly graphic examples. In Oklahoma, one high school had to be moved to a temporary location after mold and collapsed ceilings made it unsafe for student occupation. Public school buildings in New York City and Ohio are also literally falling apart, and some schools run by the Bureau of Indian Affairs have also been reportedly crumbling.
