This makes no sense

Math is hard.  It is clearly not working in favor of traditional public education.


Bob Hill, superintendent of the Firelands schools, a district that covers Amherst and western Lorain County, said some of the problems come down to simple math.

"Our district gets $4,145 a year per student, but when a student leaves and goes to either a charter school or an online school, the state pays an average of $5,704," he said. "How is that fair? We lose $4,145 and another school gains $5,704. This is what we need to change."

The state contributions to charter and other non-traditional schools were a popular target during the program. The educators said they cannot understand the logic behind the state's funding.

They noted non-traditional schools pay teachers on average of 60 percent less than public schools across the state, often have no buildings to pay for and no  busing, yet those schools get more money from the state government.

A school district gets an average of $3,540 per student from the state, the group said. By contrast, Ohio pays a charter school an average of $7,189 per student, supplies an "e-school" that provides teaching over the Internet an average of $6,658 per student, and gives a voucher with an average worth of $6,774 per student to a private school.

"It's hard to understand why local schools get so little," said Hill.