Following the Great Recession, which triggered a historic decline in per-pupil spending, states that were most reliant on state revenues to fund K-12 public education also saw the greatest decreases in school spending as well as learning outcomes. The declines ended a 50-year upward trend in national math and reading test scores.
And despite federal boosts in funding in 2009, the relief money was not enough to fully offset education spending cuts, which triggered what some have called a “lost decade” of achievement.
