Tennessee Education Commissioner Penny Schwinn’s statewide bus tour came to Ooltewah High School this week, one of 50 school district stops over three weeks to highlight summer learning opportunities, as well as to boost the state’s new public school funding formula, the Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement.
She followed the visit with a Chattanooga Times Free Press interview.
The new funding formula will infuse a one-time $250 million investment in educational spending statewide starting this fall. After that, $750 million in recurring funds will be dispersed in fiscal years 2023 and 2024.
The formula is student-weighted. It starts at a base amount of $6,860 per student and then includes additional funding for unique individual student needs, like those who are low-income or have a disability. The formula also allocates direct funds to support areas like early literacy, career and technical education programming, one-on-one tutoring and charter schools.
Hamilton County Schools is projected to receive $397 million in fiscal year 2024, $47 million more than the $350 million the system will receive this academic year, according to state Department of Education projections.