Iowa is the first state approved for a federal “Returning Education to the States” waiver, allowing it to consolidate several federal programs into a $9.5 million block grant and giving the state greater flexibility in how education funds are used. The move reflects a broader shift away from federal micromanagement toward state-led education policy, aligning with long-standing conservative argumen...
Turnout in the March special election remained extremely low across the participating districts. Across the 12 contests, just 6,336 votes were cast out of 136,901 registered voters — a turnout of only 4.6 percent. Individual district turnout varied significantly. The highest turnout occurred in Sibley-Ocheyedan CSD, where 34.8 percent of registered voters participated in the PPEL renewal election....
Sarah Curry returns to the studio to break down the K–12 budget process and why school spending decisions matter for property taxes—especially because, in most places, schools make up the largest share of the property tax bill. The core premise is simple: if “spending drives taxes” is true for cities and counties, it’s true for school districts too, and taxpayers deserve to understand what local b...
School boards control spending and every budget involves choices. While administrators draft proposals, boards hold the legal responsibility to set priorities. Claims that “we have no choice” should be questioned, because budgeting always involves tradeoffs in programs, staffing, compensation, benefits, and district structure. Spending decisions should be evaluated through a per-pupil and outcomes...
Iowa school districts such as Boone and Cedar Rapids are proposing major budget cuts, yet their per-pupil spending has risen sharply over the past five years and now sits well above the national average, with Iowa averaging over $22,000 per student. This growth was driven largely by school board spending decisions and the temporary influx of federal pandemic relief funds that masked enrollment dec...
Student enrollment declined in 2025: Iowa’s K–12 enrollment in public, charter, and private schools fell by about 1 percent in 2025, driven primarily by a 1.5 percent drop—more than 7,000 students—in public school enrollment. Public school trends drive overall enrollment, not private school growth: While private school enrollment increased modestly in 2025, those gains account for only about one-t...
Iowa’s K–12 enrollment is declining as birth rates fall and fewer young families move into the state, and that trend is expected to continue for at least the next decade. Enrollment drives school funding, which means shrinking student counts—especially in small districts—create financial pressure and push more districts onto the “budget guarantee,” shifting costs onto local property taxpayers. Dis...
Take a look at your school district's taxes, spending, and student achievement.