Those tales you’ve heard — of teacher layoffs, over-crowded classrooms, cancelled art programs and students having to provide their own toilet paper — may be even worse this year, with per-student spending down from last year in 26 states. These new cuts come on top of steep reductions made in the past few years.
This chart from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (via Wonkblog) shows that per-student spending in most states is lower now than it was in 2008, when the financial collapse led to drastic reductions in state revenues.
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