Oklahoma State Superintendent Joy Hofmeister is asking Oklahoma’s congressional delegation to help reverse changes to a rural-school funding program.
Hofmeister wrote a letter to U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and Oklahoma’s U.S. senators and representatives pointing out the state stands to lose more than $1 million. The U.S. Department of Education quietly changed eligibility for the Rural and Low-Income Schools program last week from being based on the percentage of students qualifying for free and reduced-price meals to Census Bureau data.
The Census can miss residents in rural areas. Hofmeister estimates the change will cut Oklahoma’s number of districts eligible for the program from 144 to 82.
