About 90% of America's 480,000 school buses run on diesel, now averaging $5.62 a gallon against $3.70 a year ago. Districts are consolidating routes, staggering bell times, and tapping rainy-day funds, and one Washington official measured the hit in teachers.
Mary Johnson
A Reason Foundation analysis scored the 100 largest districts on eight financial measures. Fort Bend ISD in Texas triggered seven of eight warning signs and Gwinnett County in Georgia six, while only two large districts, Baltimore City and Rutherford County, triggered none.
Arthur Chen
The DeKalb County School District agreed to pay $29.5 million to seven charter schools that sued over withheld funding, nearly triple the roughly $10 million they first claimed. A judge had ruled the district breached its contracts, and the deal now requires it to show its funding math every month.
Arthur Chen
The Quality Education Commission says schools need $13.8 billion just to hold steady and $16.2 billion to hit new targets. Enrollment has dropped nearly 33,000 students since 2017, and even the commission's own chair says more money alone won't fix it.
Mary Johnson
New Jersey's 2027 budget sends districts a record $12.4 billion in state aid, but leaders say it will not cover soaring health-insurance premiums and other rising costs. Many are again facing staff and program cuts weeks before school starts.
Mary Johnson
The cost of covering employee healthcare has risen astronomically for Georgia school systems over 16 years, from about $2,000 per worker a year in 2010 to more than $23,000 now. Districts say it is forcing tradeoffs that reach students.
Mary Johnson
