Archived Information

School Finance: Statistical Comparisons

FY00 Per Pupil Expenditures

Integrated Operating Costs

Because of the variety of school district organizational structures, it is often difficult to do fair comparisons of per pupil expenditures. In order to standardize costs among districts, the Department of Education calculates an "integrated per pupil cost" for each of the 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts. These figures represent the average cost of education for all children residing in a community, regardless of the district where they attend school. In addition to a local district's current operating cost, a portion of regional district costs are added to each regional member's total spending. Tuition paid to other schools is also included in the integrated cost.

The total integrated cost is divided by a town's "net average membership". This figure is the sum of that community's pupils in local schools, regional schools, school choice districts, charter schools, special needs placements, and other public school settings.

The following graph compares the integrated cost in FY93, the year prior to the passage of Education Reform, to the FY00 school year.