North Carolina ranked 48th in the country in terms of public education funding for the third year in a row, according to the latest annual state-by-state analysis of school funding from the Education Law Center.
The state also ranked 49th in terms of funding effort, which looked at school funding as a percentage of state GDP.
"If North Carolina wanted to increase its investment in public schools, it suggests that it has the capacity to do so," said report author Danielle Farrie.
“And if it did, it could increase revenues in a way that puts it more in line with the rest of the country and that would generate thousands of dollars per student in additional revenue for students that could be used to implement, you know, the kinds of programs and services that are needed to make sure they are successful.”
The report analyzed 2022 data and found that North Carolina spends less than $12,000 per student, nearly $5,000 below the national average. Historical data shows the state has consistently been near the bottom of the pack in funding since 2011, but North Carolina was ranked higher in 2010 – when it ranked 27th in the country.
The state ranked 12th in the report’s analysis of funding distribution, which ranked how progressive states were in allocating more funding to poorer school districts. Farrie said the impact of that is blunted by the lack of overall funding for things like recruiting qualified teachers, reducing class sizes or supporting struggling students.
“If you don’t have that base of funding, then the progressiveness is not going to be able to deliver the promise that, you know, we want to see from it.”
Farrie said it is possible for states to meet student needs with lower funding, but disputes like the long-running Leandro case suggest North Carolina is not.
That case has roots in a 1994 lawsuit filed by several school districts in low-wealth areas who argued the state was not meeting its constitutional obligation to educate children by providing inadequate funding. After several rulings and appeals, the case still awaits a final verdict 30 years later.
