speaking of the foundation budget

Here's a piece I wrote for the Globe as a parent in the Worcester Public Schools.

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A few notes that I tweeted out on this:
One thing we are not talking about in Massachusetts is population and demographic shifts.
Most districts in the state are getting smaller; Gateways are not, largely. They're growing. Since 2008, non-Gateway districts have dropped 2.5% in enrollment; Gateway cities have grown 3.8% in enrollment.
What our student enrollment looks like is also changing. The fastest growing demographic in student enrollment is Latino students; from 2008, they went from 13.8% of our student population to 20% of our student population. Over the same period, African-American students went from 8.1% of our enrollment to 9% of our enrollment.
Because of how our districts are defined, no single district looks like the above. Either you're seeing a shift or you aren't, possibly at all.
Per pupil increases, as I've said before, don't touch (usually) the Gateway cities. But per pupil increases pass. The foundation budget findings which would help the Gateway cities the most (no question, 'though don't you believe it when someone tells you only they would benefit) don't pass.
That doesn't say anything good about our bastion of public education, equality, and democracy, does it?

Yesterday was the last Ways and Means hearing for FY19. The ball's in the Legislature's court. As Matt Murphy said in State House News Service yesterday, "The House and Senate, where Democrats hold super majorities, will have an opportunity to set their own education funding levels when they pass their own budget bills in April and May." We'll see what those priorities are.