This letter to the editor was published by The Columbus Dispatch.

State Senator Bill DeMora’s Feb. 13 opinion piece criticized a proposal from The Buckeye Institute urging lawmakers to help build more classroom space at non-district schools as those schools see a greater influx of students.

DeMora asserts Ohio should spend more money on public district schools instead of helping all schools educate Ohio’s children. He writes public districts are asked to “do more with less” and that Ohio doesn’t adequately pay teachers.

Facts show otherwise.

• Ohio’s new school funding plan passed by the General Assembly includes more than $1 billion in spending on public district schools over just two years—a historic level of spending.
• Per-pupil spending increased more than 40 percent between 2014 and 2023—well above inflation.
• Since 1997, Ohio has spent more than $11 billion on public district school facilities.
• Furthermore, average Ohio teacher salaries are in the top half of states nationally and higher than most neighboring states.

Ohio does very well by its public school districts. Now, it needs to do well by other education providers and their students too.

Greg R. Lawson, Research Fellow, The Buckeye Institute