Dearest reader,
Lady Budgetdown has opened a fresh ledger, and this time the carriage has arrived in Lake Orion Community Schools. 🪶
As always, Step One begins with a simple question:
What changed over the last ten years?
From 2014–15 to 2024–25:
📉 Pupil Count: −8.96%
💰 All-Sources Revenue per Pupil: +50.86%
📚 Total Instruction per Pupil: +39.46%
🧾 Instructional Support per Pupil: +83.65%
🏛� Business & Administration per Pupil: +57.08%
🔧 Operations & Maintenance per Pupil: +49.22%
🍎 Average Teacher Salary: +4.97%
For comparison, Lady Budgetdown's inflation benchmark for the decade is +35.83%.
And that makes one contrast particularly difficult to overlook.
While instructional support spending per pupil increased 83.65% and business and administration increased 57.08%, the district's average teacher salary moved from $66,574 to $69,881.
That's an increase of just $3,307 — or 4.97% over ten years.
Meanwhile, enrollment declined by approximately 681 pupils.
Now, Step One is not where Lady Budgetdown begins assigning motives or declaring that spending was unnecessary.
It is where she opens the ledger, adjusts the spectacles, and circles the numbers that deserve another look. 👓
And there are certainly a few circles on this page.
Next: Step Two.
Let us count the chairs. 🪑🪶
📚 Source: Michigan Department of Education, Bulletin 1014 — Financial Information of Michigan Public School Districts, 2014–15 & 2024–25.
#LadyBudgetdown #LakeOrionSchools #MichiganSchools #SchoolFinance #EducationTransparency #FollowTheReceipts #WithReceiptsAndRespect