Southbridge Ranked 14th In Central Mass. Per Pupil School Spending

Ken O’Brien

Go Local Worcester reports this morning that Southbridge ranks 14^th highest among 43 central Massachusetts communities in terms of per pupil expenditures.

Based on 2012 data from the Massachusetts Department of Education the publication calculates Southbridge spent an average of $12,894 per student. That compares to $12,985 for Tantasqua, which ranked 13^th and $12,786 for Webster which was ranked as number 15 in the region. 

The Southern Worcester County Regional Vocational school district (Bay Path) was ranked third with an average per pupil expenditure of $16,966.

It should be noted that the top three districts in terms of per pupil expenditures were vocational technical school districts.

The article states, “Budgeting for vocational technical schools is often higher than that of public schools for a variety of reasons, but the biggest factor is the additional technology and equipment needed for training their students. Vocational schools also need to buy equipment more frequently, because having up-to-date labs and technology is important for properly teaching students.”

The author also notes that this single metric does not always equate with district performance.

Out of 43 school districts, 11 are more than $2,000 lower than the state average per pupil. Of those 11, four of the school districts are more than $3,000 less than the state average.
The Dudley-Charlton School District is one of those four school districts. With only $10,624 per pupil to spend - ranked fourth lowest in Central Massachusetts - the school district admits that funding isn’t always easy.

“We have ranked toward the bottom of the state consistently for the past 25 years now,” said William Prifone [sic], the finance director for the Dudley-Charlton School District. “Our district has a strong reliance on state funding, which has only increased by a small amount. Our town is also one of the many throughout Massachusetts that is strapped financially.”

Although Dudley-Charlton lacks the funding per pupil that other schools may have, the school district continues to make the best of the situation. What is lost in budget cuts and lack of funds, the school makes up with a “great work ethic,” according to Prifone [sic].

“We run a thin staff,” said Prifone [sic]. “With that being said, our district has a great work ethic. But even with that attitude, we do face disadvantages. We are not able to integrate as much technology into the classroom as we would like. We try to save money on all items not in the classroom.”
 And although Dudley-Charlton lacks the per pupil funding that other schools may possess, their allocation of funds has been paying off. Out of the 43 districts in Central Massachusetts, Dudley-Charlton ranked 16th in graduation rates for the year 2012 with a graduation rate of 91.3-percent.