Equality of Opportunity

In the article "Education and Equality of Opportunity", written by Joel Spring, he states that, “Most parents choose housing based on the quality of education offered by the local school district. There is a direct relationship between the cost of housing in a school district and the amount of money that school districts spend per student. School districts are primarily funded by local property taxes. The more expensive the property, the more money local schools can raise in taxes to support their schools.”

The other day I was watching a show called "Property Virgins" and the couple who was looking to by a home had a specific wish list; on the top of that list was that the home had to be in an area where the schooling was good.  I noticed that the neighborhood where they wanted to buy their house had large lawns, a big driveway, the homes were very large, the streets were clean, the neighborhood was located in the suburban areas, and the average price of a home in that neighborhood nearly $700,000.  It made me think, "No wonder the schooling is good because the homes are so expensive thus the school district must make a fortune from the local property taxes."  I then knew neighborhoods in the inner city, where housing costs much cheaper and schools can barely fund for basic supplies, are unable to compete with the suburban areas.  Since school districts are primarily funded by local property taxes, those from wealthier neighborhoods will always have the ability to invest more money for each student in their community compared to a poor neighborhood.