News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
While some school officials are frustrated with changes surrounding the state’s TISA funding model, House Speaker Cameron Sexton said he believes the plan has been clearly explained.
Sexton said with some 130 districts in the state, getting everyone on the same page can be a challenge. Several Upper Cumberland Directors have voiced frustration or confusion with sudden changes in their allocated funding. Some directors have said their district lost hundreds of thousands due to recalculations.
“I think everybody understands the TISA formula, but, you know, if you talk to school superintendents, their number one item that they always want is more funding for various things,” Sexton said. “When you talk to school boards, sometimes funding is there, but sometimes that’s second or third.”
Sexton said TISA funding numbers are calculated through student population and the services those students need. He said the numbers are subject to fluctuation depending on changing enrollment numbers. He said when these recalculations happen, some directors may agree, and others may not.
“Trying to get everybody to agree to a certain direction is very hard,” Sexton said. “Especially when you’re a very small rural county to a very populous city like Memphis or Nashville. So it’s very hard to get everybody on the same page.”
He said he believes TISA is a clearer funding system than the BEP because no one understood how money was getting into school systems. Sexton said with TISA, even through recalculation, numbers come through more transparent criteria.
He said as communities grow, those school systems can expect more money to flow through. He said for the coming year, funding metrics may take into account the amount a school system can pay on its own.
“For example, if you’re in Clay County, they can’t afford to put in as much as what Putnam County can through their tax base,” Sexton said. “So they may get a higher proportion of state funding in their schools than, maybe, what a Putnam county does.”
He said over the past decade, the state has put some $3 billion in funding toward education and intends to continue to increase allocations for school districts across Tennessee.
