Vermont is the state that provides the greatest funding effort to K-12 education, according to the Education Law Center.
In a report, “Making the Grade 2019: How Fair is School Funding in Your State?” the center analyzed the combined state and local revenue provided through each state’s school finance formula in 2016-17, adjusted to account for regional variations in labor market costs.
The report defines funding effort as the percentage of state wealth or gross domestic product allocated to support the K-12 school system.
Funding effort in 2016-17 ranged from 7.03% in Vermont to 2.52% in Arizona. The national average for K-12 funding effort is 3.79%, the report says.
The center says it compiled the data “as a tool to inform policymakers, business and community leaders, teachers, parents and students about the condition of public school funding in their state.”
Here are the 10 states with the highest K-12 funding effort:
State Funding effort
Vermont 7.03%
New Jersey 5.39%
Maine 4.78%
Wyoming 4.74%
New York 4.73%
Connecticut 4.53%
Illinois 4.50%
South Carolina 4.45%
West Virginia 4.43%
Pennsylvania 4.41%
