State Funding Per Pupil
The state’s per-pupil funding for Allegany Public Schools increased 18.2% between fiscal 2019 and fiscal 2024. That’s the smallest increase among all 24 Maryland public school districts.
Per-pupil funding is based on a formula that utilizes the district’s total enrollment and the characteristics of its students. It’s too soon to know what the per-pupil funding level will be in the later years of the Blueprint.
Here’s the district’s initial Blueprint Implementation Plan. And here’s what the state Accountability and Implementation Board – which oversees the Blueprint – had to say about Allegany Public Schools’ Blueprint Implementation Plan:
Strengths:
- Allegany County Public Schools is making full-day pre-K more available by utilizing unused space around the schools. The district also created an early learning center that will provide professional development for early childhood education teachers. The district is looking to offer public school space to private providers to help them join the pre-K effort, and is working with Head Start to serve 3-year-olds.
- The district is prioritizing diversity. District officials are working with Diversity in Education to review its systems to make sure they are employing a diverse workforce that reflects the student population.
- The district created a dual enrollment program with Allegany College in hopes of training more teachers.
Needs improvement:
- The district should encourage teachers to get National Board Certified to begin their career advancement plan. The school focuses on salary as a way to climb the ladder but this certification will allow teachers to focus on professional growth and improved teaching.
- The county has a demand for skilled workers in construction maintenance, culinary arts and law enforcement, and the district could offer apprenticeships in those fields.
- The district needs to develop a plan to engage stakeholders in the school system as its Blueprint plan moves forward.
- By Holliday Woodward