A message from MSEA President Paul Lemle
Where We Stand on Attacking Poverty
I wrote in the last issue that National Board Certified teachers increase student learning by 20% (the equivalent of two months of school!), and early readers taught by NBCTs are much more likely to reach proficiency. High quality educators are one of the “pillars” of the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future. Reducing the effects of poverty on children is a second pillar of the Blueprint.
When we invest in education, student achievement and graduation rates improve. Life outcomes— employment and wages—improve too, especially for students from low-income families. The Blueprint makes these targeted investments in several ways. Schools with high concentrations of poverty receive funding for community school coordinators, who partner with local organizations to provide health care and food security. Children from low-income families have free, high-quality pre-K. And funding is equitably adjusted to support districts and schools that serve communities with the highest concentrations of poverty.
This targeted state funding relies on a partnership with local districts to adequately fund their share of schools. Unfortunately, some counties are moving in the wrong direction. In Harford, schools have been underfunded by $75 million over the past three years. The education share of the Howard budget has shrunk from 52.7% in 2021 to 46% this year. Frustratingly, these are two examples among many. The headwind against our efforts to fully fund schools is the concentration of money among the ultra-rich and a subsequent lack of investment in our schools and communities. This issue’s feature story focuses on where this problem came from and what educators are doing to push back.