On Monday, June 2nd, the Missouri School Funding Modernization Task Force met in Jefferson City for their first meeting. Governor Mike Kehoe established the task force by executive order earlier this year and is asking the task force to wrap up their effort and produce a report by December 1, 2026. This report is to include three alternative recommendations for potential state funding models for public K-12 education, including charter and virtual schools.
Per Executive Order 25-14:
The Task Force shall develop recommended changes to modernize the state funding structure for K-12 education. The recommended funding model should consider the following principles:
- Equality of opportunity for all students, regardless of geographic location, socioeconomic status, or other factors that cause disparate opportunities.
- Sustainability, based on realistic state and local revenue forecasts, including bounds for realistic changes in funding on an annual basis.
- Incentives are based on the performance of schools and educational outcomes.
- Adequate funding to sustain school operations and address reasonable educational costs.
- Includes support for non-traditional public-school options (e.g., charter schools, virtual learning, etc.).
- Maintaining local flexibility to utilize funds to best meet student needs.
At the first meeting, Governor Kehoe and Commissioner of Education Karla Eslinger provided their opening remarks. State Senator Rusty Black (R-Chillicothe) has been appointed Chairman of the Task Force, and he requested the State Department of Education provide the group with an overview of the current school foundation formula.
Following the presentation from Dr. Kari Monsees, Deputy Commissioner of the Department of Education provided an explanation for the task force and answered numerous questions. Attached are copies of the presentation provided to the group.
The Task Force will break into four separate working groups for the meetings ahead and the groups were be divided as follows:
- Funding Targets – mechanisms to define performance districts; establish targets for funding; and predictability for stakeholders
- Student Counts – use of data for enrollment or attendance; what student populations need additional weighting; and population density factor
- Performance Incentives – incentive positive outcomes, and weight of funding on overall student count (smaller vs larger districts)
- Local Effort Factors – what local resources to include, assessment practices for local property valuation, and consideration of local wage and income factors
At the end of the meeting, several members spoke up specific items of interest to which they believe should receive consideration and exploration. Those other items that will garner discussion include:
- Existing and future hold harmless provisions for LEAs
- Modernization of payment for charter schools
- Modernization of payment for virtual schools
- Phase-In consideration for new formula vs. existing
- Allowable and required use of state funding such as the state teacher fund and mandates on professional development training.
- Money tied to LEAs vs students
It was clear that the Task Force will be facing difficult obstacles regarding how to find future resources to fund the school funding formula. History has shown that equalization of local effort for property valuation will be divisive between the urban, rural and suburban areas. Many Missouri rural counties will have difficulty meeting the state required level of effort as their total county property valuation is dramatically lower than a more populated suburban county.
The committee has set their next meeting for Monday, June 23rd in Jefferson City.