POLICY PAPERS

Education in Oklahoma: The Real Costs

By Steven J. Anderson and Brandon Dutcher · Thu, Aug 11, 2005 03:49 PM CDT
Education

The real cost of Oklahoma's public education system is substantially higher than what the "official" government reports reveal. Government officials reported that the per-pupil expenditure in 2003 (the latest year for which data are available) was $6,429. But a new OCPA study, using generally accepted accounting principles to report expenditures that would be included on a regular financial statement, finds the real cost that year was more than $11,250. Taxpayers - as the ones who are paying the freight - deserve to know the real cost of education.

Oklahoma taxpayers are paying Casady prices and Holland Hall prices for public schools. Indeed, $11,250 would pay for full tuition at all but a few of Oklahoma's nearly 200 private schools.