Our public schools must be held more accountable, or our business community – our economic development efforts – will suffer. That is the very clear and direct message being delivered by the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council. In short, while the state is ranked ninth in terms of how much it spends per pupil ($7,990), that investment is producing a weak return. Evolving Funding Landscape for Not-for-Profits Not-for-profit organizations are being asked to do more with less,… At the high school level, Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores, while having improved in recent years, remain comparatively low. And in the elementary schools, disturbing trends remain. For example, one in three fourth graders in Rhode Island failed to meet the basic mathematics and science standard. RIPEC’s point is a simple one – and it speaks to the very reason why the business community should be concerned about poor performing public schools. If companies perceive Rhode Island to have a below-par public education system, they will think twice about locating or expanding here. And until our testing numbers dramatically improve that perception will exist. ”Rhode Island’s competitiveness is directly linked to the quality of its workforce – and it starts with a high performing public school system,” said Gary Sasse, RIPEC’s executive director. “While the state has experienced some improvement in the 1990s, our student performance continues to trail our neighboring states.” It is time the state Department of Education considers serious reform measures. Those measures could include stricter teacher-testing, scheduling changes or a re-focusing of the students’ curriculum. It is time for our investment in pubic education to begin paying the dividends it should.
Beyond Cash Donations: How New Forms of Giving Are Transforming Not-for-Profit Accounting
RIPEC’s stern warning
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