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Hall Pass - February 25, 2026

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Ballotpedia's Hall Pass


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Your Ticket to Understanding School Board Politics



Welcome to Hall Pass, a newsletter written to keep you plugged into the conversations driving  school board governance, the politics surrounding it, and education policy. 

In today’s edition, you’ll find:

  • On the issues: The debate over whether America's public schools need more money — or better accountability
  • School board filing deadlines, election results, and recall certifications
  • Kentucky Supreme Court rules charter school law violates state constitution
  • Extracurricular: education news from around the web
  • Candidate Connection survey

Reply to this email to share reactions or story ideas!

On the issues: The debate over whether America's public schools need more money — or better accountability

In this section, we curate reporting, analysis, and commentary on the issues school board members deliberate when they set out to offer the best education possible in their district. Missed an issue? Click here to see the previous education debates we’ve covered.

According to the Reason Foundation, a libertarian think tank, the United States spent an average of $20,322 per student in 2023. That figure, however, masks a wide variation in spending across states. At the high end, New York, New Jersey, and Vermont spent roughly $29,000, while Idaho spent the lowest at $11,417. 

The differences in state educational spending provide researchers with a natural laboratory for exploring the debate over the relationship between spending and academic outcomes. In other words, what effect does additional funding, above some baseline amount needed to pay teachers and keep the lights on, have on student learning?

Today, we look at essays from two writers who come down on different sides of the debate.

Stanford University education professor Linda Darling-Hammond says funding matters for schools, especially when it is directed toward lower-achieving students. Darling-Hammond argues the U.S. education system is inequitably funded, and cites several studies she says indicate that targeted spending on students in poverty can close achievement gaps, increase graduation rates, and lead to higher wages in adulthood. She says people who point to declining scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), a federally administered standardized test, to justify cutting school funding are drawing the wrong lessons.  

Jennifer Weber, a K-12 Education Policy Fellow with the Manhattan Institute, says the relationship between funding and student outcomes is not so clear-cut. She says that New York’s eighth-graders have continued to receive disappointing scores on the NAEP, even as spending has risen over time. Weber says many other states spend less per pupil than New York and see better outcomes, suggesting education leaders should focus less on the overall education budget and more on how the money is being spent. 

How Education Funding Matters: Lessons From NAEP, The Pandemic And Recovery Efforts | Linda Darling-Hammond, Forbes

“For example, an analysis of California’s 2013 school funding reform, which directs more dollars to school districts serving students with greater needs, found that increases in per-pupil spending for these students improved math and reading achievement by a full grade level relative to similar students before the reforms; reduced the probability of grade repetition; increased the likelihood of high school graduation and college readiness; and helped to decrease suspensions and expulsions. Additional state funding during the pandemic for learning recovery and wraparound supports enabled the state’s students to hold steady in reading on the NAEP—with Los Angeles actually gaining ground—and to lose less ground in math than those in most other states.

“Research shows that adequate and equitable education funding can improve outcomes for students with the greatest needs. This occurs as student outcomes improve through the ability to hire and retain well-prepared teachers, provide smaller class sizes and added instructional supports, and invest in early childhood programs. Studies consistently find that the effects of higher spending on student outcomes are larger for students from low-income families and students who have been lower-achieving.”

New York Leads in School Spending—But Not Student Achievement | Jennifer Weber, City Journal

“Research shows that education spending doesn’t necessarily improve academic performance. A recent Brookings Institution analysis compared state education spending with student outcomes and showed that, after accounting for income and demographics, spending levels alone don’t explain differences in student achievement.

“The gap between New York’s spending and achievement is more than a fiscal concern; it affects the trajectories of thousands of young New Yorkers. With less than a third of eighth-graders proficient in reading and math, many enter high school already behind. Leaving so many students unprepared for high school and beyond is a failure—especially given how much the state spends.

“Improving outcomes will require greater clarity about what education spending is supposed to produce. When funding decisions are not linked to academic results, systems have limited incentive to examine whether resources are improving instruction or student learning.”

School board update: filing deadlines, election results, and recall certifications

In 2026, Ballotpedia will cover elections for more than 30,000 school board seats. We’re expanding our coverage each year with our eye on covering the country’s more than 80,000 school board seats.    

March 3 elections

Next Tuesday, Ballotpedia will provide coverage of school board elections in Arkansas, North Carolina, and Virginia. Ballotpedia is covering all elections in Arkansas and North Carolina. 

  • North Carolina: In the Tar Heel State, some districts hold primary and general elections, while others hold only general elections. Primary elections are held March 3, with any runoff elections scheduled for May 12. General elections will be held Nov. 3. One of the districts holding primaries on March 3 is Guilford County Schools, which enrolls roughly 68,000 students, making it the third largest in the state.
    • North Carolina is one of five states where school districts hold both partisan and nonpartisan elections. While most school board elections have historically been nonpartisan in North Carolina, the General Assembly has allowed a growing number of districts to hold partisan elections since 2013. 
  • Arkansas: School board elections are held in even-numbered years on the first Tuesday in March, aligning with the statewide primary date. Arkansas school board elections will look a little different in 2026 than they have in the past. The Legislature passedHB 1724 in 2025, requiring a single date for school board elections. Previously, districts could decide to hold elections in the spring or fall.
    • Little Rock School District, the state’s second largest by enrollment, is one of the districts holding elections March 3. Three of the seats up for election were supposed to be on the November 2025 ballot, but HB 1724 mandated that districts with fewer than 20,000 students reduce their boards from nine to seven members and create new election zones. As a result, Little Rock's 2025 school board elections were postponed, with elections for the restructured seven-member board scheduled for March 2026.
    • In Arkansas, candidates run in nonpartisan school board elections only. 
  • Virginia: Ballotpedia is covering a special election for one of the 12 seats on the Fairfax County Public Schools school board. The Fairfax County Democratic Committee endorsed Tom Dannan, while the Fairfax Republicans endorsed Saundra Davis. 

Click here to learn more about 2026 school board elections. 

Kentucky Supreme Court rules charter school law violates state constitution

On Feb. 20, the Kentucky Supreme Court struck down a law allowing the legislature to fund charter schools. The ruling is the latest chapter in the state’s long-running battle over charter schools.  

HB 9, which became law in 2022 after the General Assembly voted to override Gov. Andy Beshear’s (D) veto of it, would have allowed state and local funding to follow students from traditional districts to charter schools and required the creation of charter school pilot programs in Louisville and parts of Northern Kentucky. The law has been the subject of litigation ever since.

Kentucky is one of only six states with no operating charter schools, according to the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, an organization that advocates for charter schools. Charter schools are legally considered public schools in the states where they are authorized. Private organizations, typically but not always nonprofits, contract with the state, school district, or some other authorizing body to meet certain academic requirements. In exchange, charter schools are granted greater autonomy than traditional districts over curriculum, personnel, scheduling, and more. Minnesota passed the first law authorizing charter schools in 1991. 

Court said HB 9 violated the state constitution 

In a unanimous decision, the seven justices on Kentucky Supreme Court said charter schools do not meet the definition of a public school, and as such cannot be funded with tax dollars. 

In Kentucky, state supreme court justices are elected in nonpartisan elections.

Justice Michelle M. Keller said that the “Constitution as it stands is clear that it does not permit funneling public education funds outside the common public school system.” 

According to the state constitution, the General Assembly shall provide for “an efficient system of common schools throughout the State.” The constitution also states that funding shall be “appropriated to the common schools, and to no other purpose. No sum shall be raised or collected for education other than in common schools until the question of taxation is submitted to the legal voters…”

The justices held that charter schools differ from traditional public schools in a number of important ways. For example, Justice Keller said that charter schools can limit the number of students they admit, in contrast to public schools that must take all children in a designated area. Another difference is that locally elected boards don’t govern charter schools.

Keller wrote that Amendment 2, a 2024 ballot measure that would have allowed for state funding for non-public education, showed that charter schools raise constitutional questions. Voters rejected Amendment 2 in a 65% to 35% vote, and it lost in all of Kentucky’s 120 counties.    

In a separate concurring opinion, Chief Justice Debra Lambert said voters would need to weigh in on charter schools: “Does that mean that Kentucky is forever limited to our current educational structure? No. But it does mean that if our common and public educational system is going to be altered in the way directed by these statutes, that alteration must come in the form of a constitutional amendment.”

Voters cannot initiate statewide ballot measures in Kentucky. The state constitution gives that power exclusively to the legislature. Twenty-eight measures appeared on the ballot  between 1985 and 2024. Voters approved 18 and defeated 10.

In response to the ruling, Beshear said, “Taxpayer dollars should stay with our already underfunded public schools, and now they will. This is a win for our kids and our future.” 

Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman (R), who defended HB 9 in court, said, “The Supreme Court’s decision to limit educational choices marks a sad day for Kentucky’s children. The General Assembly has repeatedly passed bold initiatives to help our kids succeed.”

HB 9 divided Republicans and Democrats

In 2017, former Gov. Matt Bevin (R) signed HB 520, making Kentucky the 44th state to authorize charter schools. The law, however, did not include a funding mechanism for charter schools. 

For charter school supporters, HB 9 was the solution to that problem.

The bill passed along mostly partisan lines in 2022. In the House, it passed 51-46 with only Republican support. However, 22 Republicans joined with 24 Democrats in opposing it. 

State Rep. Timmy Truett (R), a public school principal, was one of the Republicans who voted against the bill. Truett said, “I’m all for parents having a choice, but I’m not for giving certain schools unfair advantages. In my opinion, House Bill 9 is a vote against public education, and I encourage you to think about that before you make that vote.”

The same story played out in the Senate, where it passed 22-14. Seven Republicans joined with all Democrats in opposing the bill. 

Kentucky has had a divided government since 2020, when Andy Beshear succeeded Bevin. Republicans have controlled both chambers of the state legislature since 2017. 

HB 9 prompted a great deal of debate. Proponents said at the time that charter schools provide families with alternatives to traditional public schools, which don't always work for all students. Critics, meanwhile, said charter schools siphon money from the public school system and operate without as much accountability. 

Beshear vetoed HB 9, saying, “it diverts taxpayer funds away from our already underfunded public schools in the Commonwealth, redirecting those funds to for-profit entities running charter schools.”

Less than a month later, the House and Senate voted to override Beshear’s veto. 

In early 2023, the Council for Better Education, a nonprofit that advocates for public education, sued the Kentucky Department of Education, arguing HB 9 was unconstitutional. A coalition of school districts also joined the lawsuit. In a preview of the state supreme court’s ruling, Franklin County Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd ruled HB 9 violated the constitution because charter schools are privately owned and operated. 

The state then appealed the ruling to the Kentucky Supreme Court. 

Charter school enrollment is growing nationwide

Forty-seven states, including Kentucky, have authorized charter schools. North Dakota was the most recent state to do so, when Gov. Kelly Armstrong (R) signed SB 2241 in April 2025. Nebraska, South Dakota, and Vermont are the only states that have not authorized charter schools. 

During the 2023-24 school year, charter schools enrolled 3.7 million students, up from 3.4 million in 2019. In comparison, traditional public school districts enrolled roughly 49.3 million in the 2024-25 school year, down from 49.6 million the year before. Enrollment in traditional public school districts declined 2.8% between the 2019-20 and 2024-25 school years.

Extracurricular: education news from around the web

This section contains links to recent education-related articles from around the internet. If you know of a story we should be reading, reply to this email to share it with us! 

Take our Candidate Connection survey to reach voters in your district

Today, we’re looking at survey responses from the two candidates running in the March 3 Republican primary to represent District 2 on the Johnston County Schools Board of Education, in North Carolina. 

Johnston County Schools is the sixth largest in the state, with roughly 37,000 students. It is located southeast of Raleigh. 

Incumbent Terry Tippett was first elected in 2024. He is a retired teacher, coach, and athletic director. Here’s how he answered the question, “What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?”

“I am determined to make sure we get input from all our stakeholders in developing policy. Financial accountability is critical and we have to find ways to meet the needs while spending tax dollars in a conservative, directed manner. We must make sure the end product justifies the expense. Public Schools must seek ways to ensure parental input is taken into consideration as policies are developed and implemented.”

Click here to read the rest of Tippett’s responses. 

Jeremy Jenkins is a registered nurse at Duke University Hospital. Here’s how he answered the question, “What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?”

  • “School Safety -- Every student should feel safe at school - physically and emotionally. I support continued improvements in safety planning, mental health awareness, and making sure staff have the tools they need to protect and support students.
  • Responsible Budgeting -- Our schools must use resources wisely. I support transparent budgeting and making sure funding is directed where it has the greatest impact on students and classrooms.
  • Special Education -- Families rely on strong communication and consistency in special education services. I support improving transparency, strengthening support systems, and ensuring students with IEPs receive the resources they need to succeed.”

Click here to read the rest of Jenkins’ responses. 

As a reminder, if you're a school board candidate or incumbent planning to run this year, click here to take the survey. If you complete the survey, your answers will appear in your Ballotpedia profile. Your responses will also appear in our sample ballot. If there is an election in your community, share the link with your candidates and urge them to take the survey!

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