Now, you might be tempted to think that the District spent so much buying and maintaining buildings that it could not afford the crack administrators needed to order textbooks. Don't give in to that temptation, either.
The District spent $662 per student on "school administration" and $302 per student on "general administration." The former included the "salary, benefits, supplies, and contractual fees" for "the office of the principal, full-time department chairpersons and graduation expenses," the latter included the money for the "boards of education staff and executive administration."
That means the District spent $994 per student for two layers of administrators who were supposed to make sure the books arrived on time. Only two states, New Jersey ($1,049) and Vermont ($1,045) spent more.
Now, you might be tempted to think that the District spent so much on buildings, maintenance and administrators that it could not afford teachers. It also would be a mistake to surrender to this temptation.
The District spent $664 per student on "instructional staff," a category that includes not only old-fashioned classroom teachers, but also "expenditures for curriculum development, staff training, libraries, and media and computer centers."
Compared to the money spent on buildings, maintenance and administrators, this $664 might seem paltry. Forget that temptation, too. The District spent more per pupil on "instructional staff" than any state.
In return, however, it got less "instruction" than any state.
In the 2005 National Assessment of Educational Progress tests administered to eighth-graders, only 12 percent of District students scored grade-level proficient in reading and only 7 percent scored grade-level proficient in math. No state did that poorly. The District spent the most money and got the worst results.
But when District kids are sweating in their classrooms later this month waiting for their books to arrive, at least they will have the satisfaction of knowing they attend the most expensive public schools in the United States.