Five school finance costing studies (2016–2023) recommended additional funding weights of 0.15–0.40 for EL students and 0.30–0.81 for low-income/at-risk students, equivalent to $1,548–$4,976 and $3,389–$8,357 in 2024 dollars¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · review r2 · q2
Currency · newest study 2025 · checked against its sources 2026-10-19 (automated, 1 of 1 entry) · not reviewed by a person · recheck by 2030: baselines and conditions change

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Costing studies from Delaware, DC, Maryland, Michigan, and Nevada all recommended additional funding for ELs and at-risk students via weightings. → Griffith 2025 q2 i? For students who are both EL and at-risk, the studies would recommend between $6,473 (DC) and $9,914 (Maryland) in 2024 dollars. → Griffith 2025

Evidence¶

Griffith 2025¶

Griffith, M., & Burns, D. (2025). Funding student needs: A review of state funding policies for English learners and students from low-income backgrounds. Learning Policy Institute. https://doi.org/10.54300/471.440

q2 · i? · review · r2

The report's synthesis of five state adequacy studies conducted between 2016 and 2023 found recommended "weights for EL students ranged from 0.15 (district of Columbia) to 0.40 (Michigan and Nevada)" and at-risk weights from 0.30 to 0.81, converted to 2024 dollars.

"The recommended weights for EL students ranged from 0.15 (district of Columbia) to 0.40 (Michigan and Nevada), and for low-income/at-risk students ranged from 0.30 (Michigan) to 0.81 (delaware). We multiplied these weights by each study’s recommended base amount and then adjusted these amounts for inflation,44 showing that in 2024 dollars, the funding recommendations ranged from $1,548 (delaware) to $4,976 (Nevada) for EL students and from $3,389 (Michigan) to $8,357 (delaware) for at-risk students."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Thirty-seven states provide dual funding for students who are both English learners and from low-income families, with 36 adding the unique weights for each group and New Jersey adjusting the combined weight — related
• In 2023–24, 49 states provided separate additional funding for English learners, most commonly through weights in their funding formulas, with a national median EL weight of 0.25 — related
• Across 11 states with transparent student group allocation, estimated combined additional funding for dual EL/low-income students ranged from $904 per pupil in Arkansas to $16,161 in New Jersey — related
• California's 20% supplemental grant weight falls below other states' adequacy-study recommendations for English learners and at-risk students — possibly the same claim (merge candidate)
• Michigan provides the lowest English Learner funding weight among weighting states, allocating about 1% to 11% more versus research recommending at least twice as much — related
• Michigan's legislated low-income funding weight of 11.5% is among the lowest in the country, and a budget loophole reduces actual spending to about 9% more — related
• In 2023–24, 44 states provided unique funding for at-risk students, with all 44 classifying low-income students as at-risk and 22 providing concentration-based funding — related
• California is one of only five states that counts high-need students unduplicated, unlike 37 of 42 states that allow duplicated funding — related