Priority 3. K-12 Education
View full brief here
Since 2004, K-12 education has always been one of the top three priorities. This high ranking is likely because issues related to K-12 education consistently make the headlines in Utah’s media. Funding and legislative session activities also make the news, particularly since the largest proportion of Utah’s budget is spent on education and the Utah Legislature sees over one hundred education bills each year. Further, education is something most registered voters have a lot of contact with since they have been in school themselves, may have children or grandchildren in school, and may be working in education. In the open-response survey, the overwhelming theme regarding K-12 education was funding. Two-thirds of comments about education included specific issues or topics. Of those comments, 66% identified education funding as an important concern. In a further breakdown of the funding comments, about one-quarter cited teacher salaries as being too low to either get good teachers or retain existing teachers. Several topics – quality of schools, class size, and Common Core – received a small number of comments.
K-12 Position in Utah Priorities
Briefs, Reports, and Blogs
Utah Foundation’s brief on K-12 Education
Also, feel free to glance through some of our older reports and blogs about K-12 education.
View all K-12 Education Reports
- Utah’s Charter Schools: Comparisons and Funding Equity with District Schools
- Who Is In Charge of Utah Schools? A Look at Education Governance in Utah
- Lessons from Our Neighbor: Learning from Colorado’s Educational Success
- Reaching Toward 2050: Education in the Midst of Population Growth
- Utah Foundation Quality of Life Index: 2013 Edition Shows Concerns About Jobs, K-12 Education and Air Quality
- Elevating Student Achievement: Successful Education Policies and Practices in Utah’s Peer States
- Inspirations and Aspirations: A Survey of 2013 Utah High School Graduates
- Reaching for Educational Equity: An Evaluation of Utah’s Rural Schools
View all K-12 Education Blogs
- Utah Thrives — Proposals for Full-Day Kindergarten
- Colorado Education Report Gets Attention from Media, Legislature
- Turning Education Funding Around
- Public schools shoulder the burden of tax cuts
- Good News in Utah’s Reading and Math Scores
- Simpson’s Paradox and the Trickiness of Statistics