South Dakota officials questioning fairness of education funding system in face of proposed budget cuts
Recently, members of the State Senate Education Committee in South Dakota voted 5-2 in favor of cutting education payments to smaller schools that have students enrolled from outside their districts. Many other members of the committee were upset with the result and some showed their frustration publicly.
"When do we have a discussion about looking at how we fund education in this state," asked Senator J. Mark Johnston, a Sioux Fall Republican, who voted against the proposal. "We have to work together, you and us and the governor, to have a real discussion about creating an education system that manages our kids," the Daily Republic relays.
Governor Dennis Daugaard has recently expressed his intentions to cut state aid by 10 percent, which would save nearly $47 million, but would further the outcry. Currently, South Dakota pays all schools in the state nearly $4,800 per student; however, Daugaard's proposed cut would lower that figure to nearly $4,320.
With fewer dollars to spend on teaching, the South Dakota schools would be potentially missing out on installing newer technologies, such as interactive whiteboards, advanced computer systems or classroom projectors, which many schools across the nation have begun to implement. However, South Dakota isn't the only state facing education cuts. A recently proposed plan by Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley would see significant cuts in several of the state's school districts.
