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In education, money counts: NH’s top schools often have the lowest amounts of poverty – Nashua Telegraph

May 16, 2013 4:49 pm / Leave a comment

This piece is interesting.  Danielle Curtis, the Telegraph’s education reporter, made the headlined observation, that our top ranked schools are in our wealthiest communities, as she was scanning the US News and Newsweek rankings.  She called me and others to talk it over and you can see the well crafted and accurate result here, on the Telegraph site.  This is a large and complex topic but she found a good thread through the issue.

Money isn’t everything.

It’s a phrase that applies to many situations in life, whether it’s a parent explaining why they won’t be buying those brand-name jeans, or a mentor encouraging a new worker to take that entry-level job they’d love.

But when it comes to education, does the saying hold true?

It’s a question that has been tossed around for years, by lawmakers trying to create a balanced budget and by educators lobbying for more funding for schools.

Take a look at the annual rankings of the nation’s top high schools, and other similar awards, and you’ll see that money is, at least, important.

“When you’re in a budget debate, the first statement is always, ‘Schools don’t get better by throwing money at them,’ ” said Bill Duncan, of Advancing New Hampshire Public Education. “But they do, actually, they really do.”

Duncan said that while money is by no means the only factor that plays into a school’s success, the financial support a district receives from its taxpayers and the socioeconomic situation of a school’s students factor into the test scores they see, the number of college-bound students they graduate and resources they can use to aid struggling students.

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