Good, but the Price Isn't Competitive
That is the bottom line about the Arlington Public Schools in a Forbes magazine survey ($) as reported in this week’s Arlington Sun-Gazette and in the Alexandria-Arlington weekly section of the Washington Post.(story, which focused almost entirely on the Alexandria public schools and chart of America's 97 “best and worst school districts for the buck”).
Rather than comparing school districts based on SAT test scores, Virginia’s SOL test scores, or on the number of Advanced Placement tests, the Post explained how Forbes compiled their list of 97 school districts, thus:
“Forbes used research compiled by the Tax Foundation and came up with a list of 775 jurisdictions in the country with populations greater than 65,000 and the highest average property taxes. The magazine then narrowed the list to 97 jurisdictions in which more than 50 percent of school spending is funded through property taxes.”
In the Washington DC region, Montgomery County was #5, Fairfax #28, Arlington #64, Washington DC #96, and Alexandria #97. To understand what Forbes meant by “bang for the buck,” just compare Montgomery (where spending per pupil was $8,824 in 2004) and Arlington ($11,855). However, Montgomery had a college entrance exam score of 1,101 compared to Arlington’s 1,085 and a graduation rate of 91.4% compared to Arlington’s 81%.
As the Arlington Sun-Gazette reported:
“Critics who have contended that the Arlington public school system spends too much and delivers too little now have some additional ammunition.”
ACTA has been saying for many years, “Ordinary services at extraordinary prices.” To put it somewhat differently, paying for a Cadillac, but getting a Chevrolet in the deal. Certainly not a bargain for taxpayers!