New audit shows DCPS spending increased to $25K per student; staffing outpacing enrollment
New audit shows DCPS spending up to $25K per student
A new audit taking a closer look at how D.C. Public Schools is spending money on staffing. The biggest finding was that staffing is growing at a faster rate than student enrollment.
WASHINGTON - A new audit is taking a closer look at how D.C. Public Schools is spending money on staffing. The biggest finding was that staffing is growing at a faster rate than student enrollment.
By the numbers:
In a five-year period, staffing at DCPS has increased by almost 20% while student enrollment grew by only 2% in that same time.
The Study of D.C. Public Schools Staffing and Resource Allocation was conducted by the city's auditing office to see where the money is going.
Since 2020, the amount DCPS spends on a student has increased by 43% to $25,000 per child.
The report also shows that in the same five-year period, the ratio of students to teachers dropped from 19 to 17 students per teacher as staffing positions were filling up and new ones were created.
In a statement, a D.C Public Schools spokesperson responded to the audit, saying, "DC Public Schools (DCPS) works every day to help all our scholars reach their full potential. This recent report highlights a staffing strategy that prioritizes teachers and led to increases in enrollment and academic performance that stands out from other urban school districts. DCPS will work with the Office of the Chief Financial Officer to identify ways to improve data systems to demonstrate the district's continued fiscal stewardship.
Following the sunset of federal pandemic relief, DCPS has increased local funding to schools by decreasing the overall number of Central Services staff."
What they're saying:
FOX 5 asked D.C. auditor Kathy Patterson what is driving the school system to spend more.
"The pressures included the collective bargaining agreement and raising pay for teachers. Another one of the findings was, in central office staff, a lot more high-paying people and few low-paid people. So, that’s been a very significant change affecting the dollar," Patterson said.
Even though student enrollment isn’t growing at the rate of staff hires, it is notable to see an enrollment increase compared to other urban school districts where enrollment is declining.
Dig deeper:
The report also highlights test scores. Even though there isn’t enough data to connect an increase in staff hires to testing, there has been a slight increase in elementary math and reading scores since COVID.
For middle school, scores aren't at pre-pandemic numbers yet, but they're up.
"If in fact our kids were showing improvement in 2019, what is the justification for a 20 percent increase in staff from 2020 forward? These are some very serious questions. To your point, what are we getting for the dollar?" Patterson said. "Yes, there was a pandemic in there. Yes, we had some education loss that we had to make up and in that, we aren’t different from any district. And that is something the school system administration needs to dig into."
Another issue that was highlighted in the report was how the district keeps track of data regarding staff.
Right now, they are using two different systems to gather information, which auditors say creates some challenges and a lack of transparency.