The Education Crisis: Why Our Schools Are Failing Despite Massive Spending

When Money Fails to Educate

I've spent years investigating how institutions fail the public, and what I've seen in American education is deeply troubling. The latest Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) scores confirm what many parents have long suspected: we're not just falling behind—we're falling further behind with each passing year.

"American 15-year-olds just posted among the lowest reading and math results this country has recorded in a generation. Reading dropped another 14 points and math sits near historic lows."

It's not just about test scores. It's about our children's futures, their ability to compete globally, and the promise of an education system that was supposed to be the engine of American excellence. Yet here we are, with more money than any nation in history—over $21,000 per student annually—and yet the results are abysmal.

The Paradox of Spending

What's most disheartening is how this spending has failed to translate into better outcomes. The data shows that while we're spending more, we're getting less. The government school system has become a bloated machine that's more focused on employment for adults than education for children. Since 2014, government schools have added about 620,000 employees while student enrollment has dropped by about 775,000. This is not education—it's a jobs program with children as the collateral damage.

Case Study: Chicago's Frederick Douglass Academy

Consider Frederick Douglass Academy High School in Chicago. Built for more than 1,000 students, it now enrolls just 27 children and employs 28 adults. The school spends more than $90,000 per pupil and has a better than one-to-one staff-to-student ratio—yet not a single child was tested as proficient in math or reading.

This isn't an isolated incident. In New York City alone, some 43% of kids are stuck in failing campuses where more than half the student body is not proficient in math, reading, or both. The city spends north of $40,000 per child—a million dollars or more for a single student's education—and still cannot get the basics right.

The Rise of School Choice

Parents are waking up to the fact that their children's futures aren't being protected by the current system. The momentum behind school choice reflects a deep frustration with a broken monopoly. The numbers speak for themselves: more than 53,000 children in New York are now learning at home—a sharp rise since homeschooling became increasingly popular over the past 15 years.

Even in states where school choice is restricted, families are finding ways to take control of their children's education. In Texas, after a major win in 2025, more than 100,000 kids were stuck on waitlists because the legislature allocated only $1 billion for the program. The state's comptroller has suggested doubling that funding next year, which is a step in the right direction—but it's still not enough.

Why Reform Matters Now

We're not just talking about policy; we're talking about children's futures. Every child deserves access to an education that prepares them for success—not one that leaves them behind. We can't continue to pour money into a system that has proven itself incapable of delivering results.

The time has come to fund students, not systems. We need to free families from the clutches of teachers' unions and give them the power to make choices that best serve their children. No kid should be trapped in failing government schools any longer.

Looking Forward

This isn't about attacking educators or dismissing their work—it's about demanding better for our children. We need leaders who understand that education reform is not a partisan issue, but a moral one. Our system must evolve to meet the needs of 21st-century learners.

Every day we delay reform, we lose another generation of students who could be thriving in environments that actually educate them. The question isn't whether we can afford to change—it's whether we can afford not to.