Increase in state aid, disparities in schools remain

11 North Shore districts will spend between $24K-$47K per student

BY ROBERT PELAEZ

Spending per student in North Shore school districts will continue to show a wide disparity in the 2023-2024 school year despite a large increase in state aid, according to an analysis by Blank Slate Media.

The range of spending per pupil in the 11 public school districts in the North Shore ranges from more than $47,000 to less than $24,000, according to the analysis.

The districts will receive more than $204 million in state aid for the 2023-24 school year thanks to a 7.1% increase in assistance to New York’s school districts. The overall state aid for those 11 will increase by an average of $4.2 million or 31.6%.

Herricks will receive $26.7 million in state aid in the coming school year, followed by Port Washington’s $19.2 million, Great Neck’s $14.9 million, Mineola’s $14.6 million, New Hyde Park-Garden City Park’s $12.1 million, Roslyn’s $12 million, Floral Park-Bellerose’s $10.3 million, North Shore’s $9.7 million and East Williston’s $7.4 million, according to the budget figures.

Long Island as a whole will see a $771 million increase in state aid as part of a budget that provides $31.3 billion in school assistance – a $2.1 billion increase from last year. While foundation aid attempts to close the gap between school districts’ spending per pupil, the disparity continues to grow on a hyperlocal level.

The North Shore School District is projected to allocate roughly $47,627 for each of its anticipated 2,527 students next year, the most among analyzed districts.

The Floral Park-Bellerose School District is projected to allocate the fewest per student, $24,250, out of the 11 districts, though projected 2023-24 enrollment was not provided by the district as of Friday.

Other school districts in the analysis that did not provide projected enrollment for the 2023-24 school year are Mineola, Sewanhaka, New Hyde Park-Garden City Park and Herricks.

The data used for all districts include the approved 2023-24 budgets and either enrollment projections for 2023-24 or the most recent 2022-23 enrollment figures.

The analysis did not take into account property tax values, special education programs, adult education programs, English as new or secondary language programs, or other external factors aside from the overall budget and how many students were enrolled in the district.

Floral Park-Bellerose has the few-

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