The Center for Rural Affairs recently signed on to support the Formula Fairness Campaign. The campaign objective is to end Title I formula discrimination against disadvantaged rural students.

Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (or, No Child Left Behind) provides federal funding to local school districts to help them meet the educational needs of disadvantaged students, primarily those living in poverty.

The formula by which these funds are distributed is badly flawed.

One provision sends more money for each disadvantaged student in a large school district and less money for each disadvantaged student in a small district, even if the poverty rate in the smaller district is higher than the poverty rate in the larger district. It’s called “Number Weighting,” and it takes money from small schools with the most poverty and gives it to big schools with the least poverty.

To learn more, go to www.formula¬fairness.com.