Higher School Spending Correlates with Worse Student Outcomes in Mississippi
Source: https://www.facebook.com/americanspectator/. "More Money Won’t Fix Our Schools. Our Data Proves It | The American Spectator | USA News and Politics." June 13, 2026. spectator.org
The Gist
The author argues that spending more money on schools doesn't make them better, using Mississippi as proof. Even though Mississippi spends much less per student than other states, its kids are reading better than students in expensive states like New York and California.
Conclusion
Increased school funding does not improve educational outcomes; better-run schools and parental choice are more effective solutions than increased spending
Premises
- Mississippi achieved dramatic improvement in 4th-grade reading (from 49th to 9th nationally) while spending among the lowest per-pupil amounts in the country
- States that spend significantly more per pupil than Mississippi (New York at $31,918 vs Mississippi's $12,300) achieve worse reading outcomes
- Within Mississippi, districts spending the most money achieve the worst results - highest-spending quarter gets 36% proficiency vs 63% for lowest-spending quarter
- Private schools in Mississippi charge about $7,000 annually and often achieve better results than public schools spending $16,640 per pupil
- Top-performing Mississippi districts like Ocean Springs achieve 75%+ proficiency on $10,300 per pupil while Jackson spends $16,640 for less than 33% proficiency
Assumptions
- Standardized test scores accurately measure educational quality and outcomes
- Per-pupil spending data accurately reflects actual resource allocation to education
- Correlation between spending and outcomes implies causation
- Private school performance is directly comparable to public school performance
- Parental choice mechanisms will lead to better-run schools