OP / ED
Imagine a restaurant preparing a dinner for 100 registered guests. The chefs, the waitstaff and the food ingredients are accounted for, but at the end of the night, the guests only pay for the food that was eaten. Imagine that in this scenario, ten guests cancel at the last minute or only pick at the food on their plates, and the restaurant still bears the full cost of serving them but now struggles to pay its bills.
Texas funds public schools similarly, providing money for only the students who show up each day rather than the total number enrolled. The result? Schools across the state are left underfunded and struggling to provide the education our students deserve.
TEXAS’ FLAWED FUNDING MODEL Texas is one of only six states that still use the average daily attendance to determine school funding. Schools receive state funding only for students present each day rather than all students enrolled. If a school has 1,000 students enrolled but an average daily attendance of 950, Texas only funds the school as if it had 950 students, even though it must plan for and serve all 1,000 students.
This outdated model penalizes schools for absenteeism, even when caused by factors beyond the school’s control. Schools must budget for every enrolled student, yet they are only funded based on fluctuating attendance numbers, creating instability and inequity in the system. All despite the knowledge that educating students in a district with high absenteeism costs more than in affluent districts with high attendance rates.
TEXAS SCHOOL BUDGETS
Schools must hire teachers, buy supplies and maintain facilities based on enrollment, yet their funding fluctuates daily. A district expecting funds for 10,000 students may only receive funding for 9,500 if some students miss school regularly.
Compare this to Netflix only getting paid for the hours watched rather than full subscriptions; it wouldn’t be a sustainable business model. Public schools cannot operate efficiently when funding is unpredictable and not connected to the number of students they are responsible for educating.
SCHOOLS CAN’T CONTROL THE ABSENTEEISM
According to the National Center for Research on Education Access and Choice, low-income students often struggle with attendance due to transportation issues, family responsibilities or health problems. Schools in these communities need more funding to address these challenges, yet they receive fewer dollars each year under the outdated ADA model.
It’s comparable to an apartment complex only being able to charge tenants for the nights they sleep there. The landlord still pays the full mortgage, but the rental income is inconsistent. Schools still pay to educate every student, whether present each day or not; however, the schools aren’t allocated the financial resources to do so effectively.
SHORT-TERM ATTENDANCE TRICKS
Instead of investing in long-term improvements like hiring more teachers or providing mental health support, schools under the flawed ADA funding model are pressured to boost daily attendance numbers with incentives like raffles and prizes.
A Texas school district in San Antonio recently resorted to offering students prize drawings to increase daily attendance numbers because their funding depends on it. This diverts resources from real education priorities, turning attendance into a numbers game rather than a meaningful investment in every one of our students.
THE HYPOCRISY OF PRIVATE SCHOOL VOUCHER PLANS While Texas lawmakers insist on funding public schools using ADA, every proposed private school voucher plan currently debated in the legislature is using the more accurate enrollment-based funding model.
This means private schools would receive taxpayer dollars for every student enrolled, regardless of attendance, while public schools struggle under an outdated system. If our lawmakers believe enrollment- based funding is the best model for private schools, why refuse to apply the same logic to public schools?
THE BETTER SOLUTION
Currently, 44 states fund their schools based on enrollment, not daily attendance. Texas should join them and move to an enrollment-based funding model that gives schools the consistent, stable funding they need to operate effectively.
By funding schools based on the number of students they serve, Texas can ensure every child gets the resources they deserve, regardless of attendance fluctuations.
UNDERFUNDING SCHOOLS CANNOT LEAD IN EDUCATION If Texas Legislators genuinely value education, they must stop shortchanging our public schools with an attendance-based funding model. ADA funding is like expecting firefighters to get paid only for the days there’s a fire; it ignores the fact that their work must continue regardless.
Texas lawmakers continue to expect better student outcomes while simultaneously underfunding the system. The state cannot claim to be an educational leader while forcing public schools to operate under an outdated and inequitable funding system.
Texas has a clear choice: be a national leader in education or continue to trail behind other states when it comes to educating our children. I encourage you to contact your legislators today and tell them to fund every student in our schools through enrollment- based funding.
Dr. Brandon Enos is the superintendent at Cushing ISD in East Texas and is the Chair of the Legislative Committee at the Texas Rural Education Association.
