Arkansas Athletic Spending

This was briefly noted on 40/29 tonight and I decided to look further into it. I have found very little information on it, just a few articles and this is the best.

A report on athletic spending was released the last week of February. This was a report mandated by law, passed during the 2004 special session and sponsered by Rep. Betty Pickett, D-Conway. The report said that Arkansas public schools spent at least $85.9 million for athletic programs last year, amounting to about $190 per student.

"I think we're getting closer to a realistic figure on what's actually being spent," Pickett said. "Still, the whole report is wrought with inconsistencies. Some of them are just flagrant."

Picket is angry because she thinks that athletic spending is high in light of the continuing battle over public school spending. Because of a state Supreme Court decision legislators are looking at increasing the amount spent per student. Currently, $1,152 per student is set aside to pay for all items outside of curriculum and instruction. About $190 of that goes to athletics.

Pickett said 10 percent of that amount is too much to direct toward athletics."I think it bothers me more now than when we first started looking at this because the school districts now have come back to us ... saying they don't have enough to operate," she said.

State Education Board member Ben Mays of Clinton, a longtime crusader for accountability in athletic spending, said he suspects districts are raiding funds intended for education to pay for sports programs. Mays contends that most districts did not fully disclose their athletic expenses. He estimates districts are spending at least $3,500 for each student involved in varsity sports. The Department of Education figures are "horribly underreported," he said.

The report doesn't say where the rest of the money goes to. If 10% is spent on athletics were does the rest go? What are the schools spending our tax money on. Athletics are the most visible program so it's easy to pick on. I'm not big on athletics myself but I do see it benefits.

I'm not sure that we're going to get any answers. Even if they figure out what money is actually spend on athletics and that it gets more than its fair share, no one is going to do anything about it. The way I see it, the legislature will raise taxes somewhere to get the education money they want. They certainly aren't going to cut any school's athletic programs. After all athletics are more important than test scores or debilitated buildings.