Large U.S. cities are grappling with too many underpopulated schools, forcing school districts to make difficult decisions on closures.
Why it matters: Most states allocate school funding based on student populations. Losing students can result in cuts for classes, extracurriculars or sports as a result of lower demand. More school districts could close schools in response to the imbalance, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Some of the larger cities around here have been dealing with the opioid crisis and homelessness. It’s not uncommon to see needles or human fences on sidewalks. Able families are going to move. Plus housing is super expensive.
Cities’ populations have declined as they’ve seen birth rates decrease and residents leave over high cost of living.
I suspect the cost of living is a larger factor than decreasing birth rate. Raising kids in the city is becoming less and less affordable. While city schools are underpopulated, schools in the suburbs and rural areas are terribly overcrowded.
Crazy thought: keep school funding and maintain teacher count so that when the falling attendance becomes a problem the student to teacher ratio will be ideal.
My wife teaches Kindergarten where the maximum allowed per classroom in her district is 24. She ended up teaching the federal limit of 31 this year and got her pink slip just a few weeks ago.
Granted, she has been there for 9 years and just got another position at another school teaching a higher grade, but poor teachers; always getting shafted everywhere.
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