Schools

Conn. Education Spending Among Highest in U.S.

In Connecticut, the school districts that spend the most per pupil probably aren't the ones you're thinking of.

With the school year and the campaign season coinciding in September, the issue of school spending is often at the forefront. Politicians often advocate for more investment in education -- or at least getting rid of potentially wasteful spending that could bog down services.

Regardless of personal views on funding public education, the fact is that Connecticut spends among the highest per pupil in the United States. A report from the U.S. Census Bureau released in June shows Connecticut ranks seventh in the nation with Washington D.C. included. Connecticut’s $14,906 spent per student in 2009-10 is the second highest in New England behind Vermont.

More recent numbers are available for the spending of all the school districts in Connecticut. In 2010-11, Fairfield spent $14,379.95 per student.

Find out what's happening in Fairfieldwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Full numbers for every district are attached to this article in a PDF, and the below charts reveal the biggest spenders in the state and country.

Biggest Spenders Per Pupil by State

State Spending Per Pupil (2009-10)
Washington D.C. $18,667
New York $18,618
New Jersey $16,841
Alaska $15,783
Vermont $15,274

Wyoming 

Find out what's happening in Fairfieldwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

$15,169

Connecticut

$14,906

Massachusetts

$14,350

Maryland 

$13,738

Rhode Island

$13,699


Biggest Spenders Per Pupil in Connecticut

School District Spending Per Pupil (2011) Total Budget (2011) Canaan $22,105.83 $3,094,595 Cornwall $22,051.40  $3,735,508

Sharon

$21,928.31 $6,283,556

Region No. 1 (Canaan, Cornwall and nearby towns)

$20,734.70  $10,429,556

Region No. 12 (Bridgewater, Roxbury, Washington)

$20,468.56 $19,115,792

Biggest Budgets By District ($100 Million-Plus)

School District Total Budget (2011) Spending Per Pupil (2011) Hartford $379,784,614  $18,100.25 New Haven $326,302,162  $18,500.16 Bridgeport $281,947,431 $13,458.71 Waterbury $256,520,588 $14,579.56 Stamford $246,545,506 $16,302.39 Norwalk $173,065,848 $15,509.44 Greenwich $161,471,040 $18,516.30 Fairfield $146,844,750 $14,379.95 New Britain

$137,063,891

$12,626.37 West Hartford

$133,734,360

$12,800.66 Danbury

$124,425,721

$11,866.41 Meriden

$114,391,035

$12,429.38 Milford

$104,002,503

$14,806.12 Manchester

$102,489,391

$13,658.20 Westport

$100,058,692

$17,435.14


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