Increasing the Equity, Transparency, and Strategic Alignment of School Budgets: Weighted Student Funding in The School District of Philadelphia

Abstract

For my residency, I led a strategic project at The School District of Philadelphia to help the District transition to a weighted student funding approach to school budgets. The goals of the transition in budgeting philosophy were to bring greater equity, transparency, and strategic alignment to the school budgeting process. In this capstone, I explore the results of the District’s proposed change in funding scheme on resource allocation to schools of various types, and analyze the extent to which weighted student funding would be likely to help the District realize the goals it set forth. The lessons learned from the execution of the strategic project illuminate important considerations for The School District of Philadelphia, as well as for the education sector more broadly.