Federal funding for K-12 schools rose dramatically during the pandemic, accounting for most of the increased spending on students according to the most recent spending data from the Alabama Department of Education.

Though state funding still makes up the bulk of spending in schools, federal spending rose from $1 billion during the 2018-19 school year to $1.6 billion in 2021-22, a 58% increase. During the same time period, state spending rose from $4.8 billion to $5.2 billion, an 8% increase.

The number of schools who used federal funding for more than a third of spending overall jumped from 14 schools in 2019 to 90 schools in 2022.

That could mean big problems for schools when federal pandemic relief funding runs out, which will happen at the start of the 2024-25 school year. Less federal funding means fewer services and personnel. And those cuts will need to be made before the next school year starts.

And some districts rely more heavily on federal funding than others. Federal spending in Barbour County, for example, made up 40% of spending in 2021-22, where it was 25% of their spending in 2018-19, pre-pandemic. Seven other school districts – five traditional and two charter schools – had federal spending make up 30% or more of their spending in 2021-22.

Federal spending made up 20% to 30% of spending in 76 other school districts, where only 16 districts had federal spending make up 20% or more of all spending in the 2018-19 school year.

Statewide, federal spending made up 20% of student spending, up from 14% in 2018-19. State spending dropped to 63% from 66%, and local spending dropped to 14% from 17% in 2018-19.

Alabama schools spent a total of $8.2 billion on students in 2021-22, up 4% from the $7.8 billion spent in 2020-21 and up 13% from the $7.3 billion spent in 2018-19.

A simple way to compare spending is to look at how much is spent on each student, known as per pupil spending. The chart below shows how spending changed over a four-year period, broken down by the source of spending.

The “other” category includes money spent that came from a source other than local taxes or state and federal funding.

School officials like to have local taxes available because those funds typically have fewer restrictions and strings. State funding is earmarked for particular uses and federal funding has a lot of regulations and reporting requirements.

Local money is typically used to offer a wider range of educational and extracurricular activities – extras that aren’t funded by the state or the federal government. Local money is also used to pay teachers above the state’s required minimum salary as a way to attract and retain teachers.

Local money can also be used to add staff to full grades and reduce class sizes, something that is often needed in the middle grades.

As expected, Alabama’s 150 school districts – 139 traditional and 11 charter schools – have a wide range of spending. The chart below shows Alabama’s 10 school districts that spent the highest total per student during the 2021-22 school year. Click here if you are unable to see the table.

The spending data is also broken down by school. The range at the school level is even wider.

Schools that educate and care for children with significant disabilities spend the most per student, anywhere between $42,000 and $163,500 per student.

Among non-specialized schools, the school that spent the highest amount per student was Lee County’s Loachapoka High School at $32,676 per student. The lowest amount spent per student was Chickasaw City’s Alabama Destinations Career Academy at $760 per student

Overall, virtual schools spent the least amount with a median of $4,730 per student.

Middle schools by and large spent the lowest amounts per student, though there certainly are exceptions. Middle schools tend to have the largest class sizes, at 30-plus students in some places, according to state officials. That’s because the state provides funding for fewer teachers in grades four through eight than for elementary and high school students.

Click here to see a guide from the department of education with the details of how the state allocates school funding.

The table below shows the amount school officials spent per student during the 2021-22 school year. The amount is calculated by taking the total amount spent at the school and dividing by the number of students in the school. Narrow the list by typing the name of a district or a school in the search box.

Click here if you are unable to see the table.

Data was not included for 13 traditional school districts and two charter schools – a total of 80 schools overall – because their financial reports were not approved by the time the state department ran the report in June.

The department is working to add the data, according to an official.

AL.com has requested spending data for those districts and will update the table when the data is received.