BURR AMENDMENT WOULD CUT $40 MILLION FROM MARYLAND PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Every single Maryland school district would lose federal funds under the Burr Amendment: Baltimore City would lose $6.2 million, Baltimore County would lose $6.2 million, Washington County would lose $859,000, Wicomico County would lose $982,000

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.), senior member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today spoke on the Senate floor to oppose an amendment sponsored by Senator Richard Burr (R-N.C.). The Burr Amendment would change the Title I funding formula in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), cutting federal funding for public schools in states like Maryland that make investing in education and closing the achievement gap a top priority.

“I’m here today to stand up for Maryland and all the educators and students who would lose resources under the Burr amendment,” said Senator Mikulski. “This amendment would punish states like Maryland that make education a priority by investing in students who need extra help. The amendment will not do a thing to lift kids out of poverty or close the achievement gap. In fact it will make the gap worse. Maryland alone will lose $40 million under this amendment, and I won’t let that happen. I am on the side of our students, and I am on the side of all the teachers and administrators who work so hard to educate them.

“We’ve had a formula that has worked for Title I because it rewards those states who are willing to make public education and the next generation a priority. Let's keep the formula we have. Let's reform the ESEA where we need to. And let's make sure that our focus is not on bottom lines, but helping more children get to the head of the class.”

The Burr amendment would punish states that have invested more in education, create winners and losers among low-income families in different regions and abandon some students while helping others. According to Center for American Progress, 58 percent of students who benefit from Title I funding would get fewer resources if the Burr amendment passes.

There are 24 school districts in Maryland and 400,000 public school students. About 170,000 of those students, or 45 percent, are eligible for Title I funding. If the Burr amendment passes, every single Maryland school district will lose a significant portion of the academic resources they currently receive.

Below is a chart detailing what each school district would lose.

Grants under Title I are the largest source of federal funding for K-12 public schools. Funding is targeted to help schools close the achievement gap and provide a quality education to every child, no matter their zip code. When schools receive intensive and sustained support from Title I, they demonstrate dramatic gains in raising student achievement. Unfortunately, the program has been severely underfunded, shortchanging school districts across the country.

In her remarks, Senator Mikulski also cited what education leaders from across the state have communicated to her in their opposition to the Burr amendment:

Dorchester County

Dr. Henry Wagner, Superintendent in Dorchester County, told Senator Mikulski that rural schools on Eastern Shore would be significantly affected. Dorchester schools would have to eliminate teaching positions, reduce reading and math services and eliminate parental support activities.

Under the Burr Amendment, Dorchester County will lose $372,000, or 19.37 percent of its Title I funding.

Washington County

In a letter to Senator Mikulski, Dr. Clayton Wilcox, Superintendent of Washington County, described how rural schools in Western MD will be harmed. Dr. Wilcox’s letter describes how Title I resources “have allowed us to create hope… They have enabled us to provide extra instructional support in literacy and math – subjects that open up windows and doors that are often shut to the under-educated.”

Without Title I dollars, Washington County would have to cut instructional support in literacy and math. Dr. Wilcox writes, “Senator Burr’s amendment is bad for the children and young people of Maryland.”

Under the Burr Amendment, Washington County will lose $859,000 or 15.41 percent of its Title I funding.

Baltimore City

Baltimore City alone receives nearly $50 million per year in Title I funding. If it loses 10 percent of its funding, as proposed under the Burr amendment, the reduction in services would be severe. Students in Baltimore could see cuts to Pre-K access, after school and summer learning programs and professional development for teachers.

Under the Burr Amendment, Baltimore City will lose $6.244 million or 12.76 percent of its Title I funding.