Majority-Black school districts have far less money to invest in buildings
9/14/2023
I analyzed federal data to show that majority-Black districts receive half the per-pupil building investment and only a fraction of state capital funding compared with mostly White districts
I downloaded the National Center for Education Statistics’ annual school-finance files, summed every district’s capital-outlay dollars from 2015-2020, and divided by enrollment to get per-pupil building-investment figures.
After joining those totals to NCES demographics, I flagged majority-Black districts and majority White ones and reran the split for poverty using free- and reduced-price-lunch rates. I compared each group’s median per-pupil spending, isolated the share coming from state—not local—funds, and ground-truthed standout districts with state budget audits, bond filings, and Census income data.
The analysis revealed majority-Black districts spent roughly half as much per student on buildings and drew only about one-quarter as much state capital aid, exposing how state funding formulas magnify local tax gaps.