What Is School Finance Equity and Why Does It Matter? Splitting the Bill: A Bellwether Series on Education Finance Equity. #1

School finance equity is an essential component of educational equity. In an equitable system, public schools receive funds to provide a high-quality education for all based on the needs of students, not on the property wealth of communities. Funding inequity also disproportionately affects students of color. Districts serving the largest populations of Black, Latino, or Native American students received 16% less funding per student in state and local funding than those serving the fewest students of color.4 Achieving both adequacy and equity in school finance will not solve every educational problem, but it is a significant part of solving deeply rooted challenges.