The Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education (BESE) recently unanimously adopted a new statewide K-12 education funding formula for the 2023-24 school year, as per this news release from the Louisiana Department of Education. This new Minimum Foundation Program (MFP) formula not only aligns with the recommendations made by the Louisiana Department of Education, but it also addresses the key areas of teacher pay, support staff pay, workplace development, and operational costs.

The new formula includes across-the-board salary increases of $2,000 for certified teachers and $1000 for non-certified support staff. Additionally, BESE had approved the addition of a differentiated compensation provision for teacher salaries, established in the MFP formula in the form of a $61 million block grant program.

Under this new provision, school systems would receive money to fund stipends for teachers who are working in critical shortage areas, as defined by BESE. Additionally, stipends can be funded for highly-effective teachers, as defined in state law and BESE policy, teachers working in schools with an economically disadvantaged student population rate of 85% or higher, and teacher leaders working to support their peers.

State Superintendent of Education Dr. Cade Brumley commented on the new formula adoption by saying, “I’m pleased to see our MFP proposal move forward with a market-responsive approach for the first time in Louisiana’s history. This will be a statewide game-changer for directly targeting pay toward staffing needs and teacher quality. Business and industry partners frequently shoulder the need for employees trained in career and technical education. Dedicating funding to our school systems specifically to support apprenticeships will encourage this career readiness approach to be lifted across Louisiana.”

Also, BESE added a projected $21.5 million to the MFP to help school systems meet their ever-increasing operational costs. The Board increased the formula’s Mandated Costs Allocation from $100 to $133 per student in order to support health insurance, retirement, transportation, and other operational costs that are incurred by school systems. This reflects the rate of inflation from 2009 when this operational component was last increased.

Additionally, the new MFP formula includes a projected $1.5 million increase to the formula’s Supplemental Course Allocation, dedicated to state-approved apprenticeship programs. These funds would be distributed to school systems based on the number of eligible students and with an enrollment limit of 250 applicants annually across both semesters. Systems that are designated as rural by the United States Census Bureau would also receive $3,500 per enrolled student, and non-rural systems would receive $2,500 per enrolled student.

BESE President Dr. Holly Boffy said, “the formula approved by the Board today supports key priorities for K-12 education in Louisiana. As the first step in the state’s education funding process, BESE’s passage of the MFP formula provides $257 million in teacher pay raises for teachers, including $2,000 for all teachers and another $60 million to meet our greatest staffing challenges in the classroom. The new MFP also increases aid for schools and districts struggling to cover rising expenses, and supports career and technical education through dedicated funding. We look forward to working with our partners in the legislature throughout the budgeting process to ensure that our students and educators receive the financial support they deserve.”

The MFP formula is set to determine the cost of teaching every K-12 public school student in Louisiana. According to the state’s constitution, BESE must create a formula for allocating state funding to public schools and submit it annually to the Louisiana Legislature. The final resolution describing the BESE-approved formula is set to be delivered to the Louisiana Legislature for review. According to state law, the Legislature may accept or reject the BESE-submitted formula but cannot alter it. BESE also asked the legislature to send the formula back to the Board so that a 2.75% increase to the formula’s base per-pupil amount and additional money for dual enrollment programs may be added should the Revenue Estimating Conference recognize additional funds throughout the budget approval process.

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