March 2025
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) recently released “The Nation’s Report Card”, which measures student performance in math and reading.
The key findings according to NAEP in the 2024 testing of 4th and 8th grades:
- Fewer than a third of students nationwide are working at the NAEP Proficient level in reading at both grades. Scoring at the NAEP Proficient level means consistently understanding written text and interpreting its meaning
- 42% of eighth-graders report high confidence in mathematics, not significantly different from 2022, a decline from 49% in 2019
Concerning Comparative Rock County Educational Disparities
EDUCATIONAL COMPARATIVE DISPARITY:
- The Beloit and Janesville school districts teach nearly 60% of students in Rock County. The Beloit school district ranks last of all 421 school districts in WI, according to the WI Department of Public Instruction report cards
- The Janesville school district ranks in the bottom 3% of school districts in WI, according to the WI Department of Public Instruction district report cards.
- Here is a recent RCF Watchdog report on Rock County public schools: Rock County School Districts – 2023-2024 DPI Scorecard Summary – Lowered Standards
How Educational Disparity Has Impacted Rock County – Personal Income Disparity
According to 2023 Bureau of Economic Analysis (bea.gov), annual per capita personal income in Rock County is 15%, or $8,657, below the WI state average; and 24%, or $13,491 per year below, the US average.
Additionally, the annual per capita personal income disparity in Rock County vs the WI state average was $4,563 in 2007, before GM closed in Janesville, and is now nearly doubled to $8,657 in 2023.
Why leadership in education matters
K-12 leadership isn’t just bureaucratic overhead – it’s the engine behind educational quality. Local school boards set the course, administrators steer the ship, and principles keep it running smoothly. When they’re effective, students graduate with better skills, higher earning power, and the know-how to manage money, all of which stack the deck for greater financial freedom. If they falter, the opposite happens: lower achievement, fewer opportunities, and a tougher road to economic security.
Educational Outcomes: The Leadership Ripple Effect
Vision and Policy Setting (School Boards)
- School boards decide strategic priorities—curriculum standards, teacher hiring policies, and funding allocation. A board that pushes for rigorous STEM programs or financial literacy courses, for example, directly boosts student readiness for high-demand, well-paid careers. A 2018 study from the National School Boards Association found that districts with proactive, data-driven boards saw 10-15% higher graduation rates and better standardized test scores than those with less engaged leadership.
- Impact: Graduates from these systems are more likely to pursue college or skilled trades, both gateways to higher earnings.
Resource Management (Administrators)
- Administrators, like superintendents and principals, turn board policies into action. They decide how to spend per-pupil funding—on advanced classes, tech upgrades, or teacher training. Research from the Education Trust (2020) shows that schools with effective administrators who prioritize equitable resource distribution (e.g., to low-income areas) close achievement gaps by up to 20% in reading and math proficiency.
- Impact: Better academic performance correlates with college acceptance and job prospects, key drivers of financial stability.
School Culture and Teacher Quality (Principals)
- Principals shape the day-to-day environment. A 2019 Rand Corporation study found that schools with strong principals—those who foster collaboration, retain good teachers, and enforce discipline—see student achievement rise by 5-10% annually. Quality teachers, supported by leadership, have outsized effects: Chetty’s 2014 research showed a top teacher boosts a student’s lifetime earnings by $50,000.
- Impact: Students from these schools develop skills and resilience that translate to better jobs and money management.
See the APPENDIX below for additional studies on how K-12 education relates to personal FINANCIAL FREEDOM.
APPENDIX
A few key studies & findings that link quality K-12 education to FINANCIAL FREEDOM :
- Chetty, Friedman, and Rockoff – “The Long-Term Impacts of Teachers” (2014)
- Focus: Looked at how teacher quality in K-12 affects students’ economic outcomes.
- Findings: A single year with a highly effective teacher (top 5% by value-added metrics) raised lifetime earnings by about $50,000 per student, adjusted for inflation. By age 28, these students were 1.3% more likely to attend college and had higher retirement savings rates—key stepping stones to financial independence.
- Why It Matters: Quality teaching in K-12 isn’t just about test scores; it shapes career trajectories and financial literacy, critical for managing money well.
- Brookings Institution – “The Economic Benefits of Schooling” (2021)
- Focus: Analyzed how K-12 performance correlates with adult financial stability.
- Findings: Students from high-performing school districts (based on test scores and graduation rates) were 25% more likely to own homes and 20% more likely to have retirement accounts by their 40s. They also had 15% lower rates of credit delinquency, a direct indicator of financial freedom.
- Why It Matters: Quality education builds not just skills but also economic behaviors—like planning and investing—that underpin independence.
- The Equality of Opportunity Project (Rajan Chetty et al., 2017)
- Focus: Linked childhood education environments to intergenerational mobility.
- Findings: Kids from areas with better-funded K-12 schools (top quartile) had a 10-15% higher chance of moving from the bottom income quintile to the top as adults. This upward mobility strongly correlates with financial freedom, as it reflects less dependence on precarious finances or public assistance.
- Why It Matters: Quality K-12 acts as a ladder out of poverty, giving kids the tools to break cycles that limit financial options.
- Alliance for Excellent Education – “The Economic Case for Reducing the High School Dropout Rate” (2019)
- Focus: Connected K-12 quality to graduation rates and economic outcomes.
- Findings: Each high school graduate (vs. dropout) generates $700,000 more in lifetime earnings and contributes $200,000 extra in taxes, easing personal financial strain. Quality schools cut dropout rates by up to 30%, directly boosting these numbers.
- Why It Matters: Staying in school—and thriving there—lays the groundwork for steady income and wealth-building, cornerstones of financial freedom
