One of the factors that skews the numbers is the way the state reports the money spent indirectly on private schools, said Frank Mauro, executive director of the Fiscal Policy Institute, a Latham think-tank that focuses on the fairness of the state's tax system, government spending, and the adequacy and stability of public services. The state can't give private schools direct funding, but that is not reflected when the state figures the amount spent per pupil in its annual report card, he said. Some students who ride buses go to private schools, and public schools will purchase textbooks for private schools, but neither figure is parsed separately, he said. The think-tank has proposed to change the formulas used to allocate school funding that would create an average amount for each student, altered for cost differences, Mauro said. Bureaucrats don't know what's the best education for a child.
All sides agree that politics play too great a role in the education system.
Noe, of the Cambridge Central School District, said he would like to offer more programs and activities, but the money just isn't there. The funding structure should be linked to performance, but schools that perform well are not being rewarded, he said. There needs to be more non-partisan discussion among politicians about reforming the system, Noe said. One side of the street has to talk to the other side of the street.