Delaware Department of Education

This strategic plan, presented by the Delaware Department of Education, aims to empower every learner with the highest quality education, ensuring readiness for success in college, career, and life. Guided by the promise "Start with Students. Build for Impact," the plan outlines five core building blocks: Bright Beginnings (expanding early education), Safe, Supportive Schools (focusing on student wellbeing, instructional leadership, and educator workforce growth), Great Teaching and Learning (emphasizing early literacy, student achievement, data systems, and college/career readiness), Fair Opportunities for Every Learner (addressing education funding reform and AI proficiency), and Families and Communities as Partners. The plan sets measurable goals and defines implementation strategies to achieve a world-class Delaware education system.

This document, presented as Frequently Asked Questions, details the work and proposed changes of the Delaware Public Education Funding Commission (PEFC) regarding the state's public school funding system. The PEFC was established to conduct a comprehensive review of public education funding, develop a roadmap of recommendations, and serve as a permanent body for annual review. Key focus areas include the proposed hybrid funding model (base, opportunity, and operational funding), ensuring equitable and predictable funding, and providing increased support for high-needs students. Implementation of the recommendations is projected to begin in August 2027, with continuous review and adjustment planned to reflect evolving needs and economic conditions.

This document outlines the strategic recommendations of the Komisyon Finansman Edikasyon Piblik Nan Delaware (PEFC) for improving the public education funding system. The plan aims to ensure equitable and predictable funding for all students, particularly multilingual learners, low-income students, and those with special education needs, through a proposed hybrid funding model. This model consists of Core, Opportunity, and Operational Funding, emphasizing accountability, transparency, and adaptability to evolving student needs and economic conditions. Initial recommendations are anticipated by Fall 2025, with execution planning and launch extending to August 2027, to foster student success by modernizing the funding framework.

The public engagement session focused on sharing information about proposed changes to the state education funding model in Delaware. The key objectives were to increase public awareness of these proposed changes and to seek feedback for the Commission's consideration. Discussions covered the importance of early literacy, strong learning environments, rigorous standards, equitable access, and engaged communities, aligning with the Governor's education priorities. The Commission reviewed its charge to make the funding system more equitable, transparent, and simple, referencing findings from the AIRIR report which indicated the current system is both inadequate and inequitable, particularly for vulnerable students. The commission unanimously voted to create a hybrid funding model that maintains existing educator pay increases and salary schedules while adding flexibility and directing more funding toward historically underfunded groups. The session also detailed the timeline for implementation, aiming for a new funding formula by August 2027, and noted that the current discussion pertains to the state portion (70%) of school funding, with local property tax funding adjustments to be addressed later.

The meeting focused on presenting the tentative project timeline for the education funding work, which aims for final legislation passage by June 30th and enactment in July 2026. Discussions covered key legislative milestones, including updates to joint education committees in January, and finalizing recommendations between March and April. The commission reviewed feedback regarding the dynamic nature of the proposed hybrid funding model, especially how equalization decisions would impact calculations. Specific feedback addressed proposals for creating tiered weights for Multilingual Learner (MLL) students, though data limitations necessitate a delay for tiered modeling until data collection is complete. The commission also discussed feedback on raising MLL and Low Income (LII) weights, and the necessity of comparing the proposed formula against the current funding structure at the district level. A key discussion point confirmed that 98% of funds generated at the school level are required to be delivered back to that school, subject to DOE auditing. Further discussion included the need to address the perception that current vocational funding weights are too low. Finally, the commission confirmed plans to conduct a formal review of the formula after one year of implementation and every three years thereafter.