Help Students in the Face of Funding Cuts

Local & District Level 

• Boulder Reporting Lab. (2024). Uncertainty hits Boulder Valley School District amid enrollment decline, new funding law and tax cap measure.
  • Abstract: This article explains how the Boulder Valley School District is facing a "perfect storm" of financial challenges. It breaks down how a new state law for funding schools, combined with fewer students enrolling in the district, is creating major budget uncertainty. This is a good resource for understanding how state-level politics and local demographic shifts directly affect a specific school district's financial health.
• Boulder Valley School District. (2024). 2024-25 Adopted Budget.
  • Abstract: This document is the official financial blueprint for Boulder's public schools. It details how the district allocates money to different priorities, from teacher salaries to building maintenance. It notably contains the district's plan to create a "Differentiated School Support" fund, a strategy to give extra financial help to schools that serve more students from low-income families or those who are learning English.
• St. Vrain Valley School District. (2025). 2025-2026 Adopted Budget.
  • Abstract: This is the official budget for the St. Vrain Valley School District, which includes Longmont and surrounding areas. This document outlines the district's spending priorities. For anyone interested in how a large suburban district plans its finances, it shows a commitment to maintaining a wide variety of student programs, including dedicated support for students learning English, even as state funding models change.
• 9News. (2024). State funding could help districts like DPS welcoming in large numbers of migrant children.
  • Abstract: This news report covers a specific, timely challenge for Colorado schools: supporting newly arrived immigrant and migrant students. It explores the additional resources these students often need to succeed and discusses how the state government is considering providing extra funding to help school districts meet these needs, highlighting a key issue for communities with growing immigrant populations.

State-Level & Policy 

• Chalkbeat. (2025). Colorado's new school finance formula is on its way to Polis' desk. What does it mean for K-12 education funding?
  • Abstract: This article is an essential primer on the biggest change to Colorado education funding in 30 years. It explains the new "Student-Centered" funding law, breaking down its primary goal: to make the distribution of school funding more fair by sending more money to educate students who have historically been underserved by the system.
• Colorado General Assembly. (2024). HB24-1448: Public School Finance.
  • Abstract: This is the official text of the new state law that is overhauling how Colorado funds its public schools. While dense, it is the ultimate primary source that details the specific mechanics of the "Student-Centered" formula, outlining the weights and factors that determine how much funding each school district will receive from the state.
• Colorado Education Association. (n.d.). Education Funding.
  • Abstract: This resource from the state's largest teachers' union provides critical background for understanding why school funding is such a contentious issue in Colorado. It explains that the state has historically ranked near the bottom nationally in how much it spends per student, a situation many refer to as a long-term "crisis" that has driven recent efforts for reform.
• Colorado Fiscal Institute. (2025). How the Federal Government Funds Colorado Schools.
  • Abstract: This report from a non-partisan research group explains the single biggest reason why Colorado struggles to fund its schools: the Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR). It analyzes how this constitutional amendment limits the state's ability to collect and spend tax revenue, creating a permanent structural barrier to investing more in education and other public services.