Skip to main content
Add as a preferred source on Google

Review Finds Key Omissions in School Staffing Report

  • 07/05/17

East Lansing, Mich. — A recent report from EdChoice, formerly the Friedman Foundation for Educational Choice, concluded that non-teaching staffing growth in schools after the Great Recession has outpaced enrollment growth and student performance. The report recommended increasing teacher pay, at the expense of non-teaching staff, and more school choice. An academic review released today finds that the report presents no logical relationship between the staffing trends presented and the solutions proposed in the report.

The report, Back to the Staffing Surge: The Great Teacher Salary Stagnation and the Decades-Long Employment Growth in American Schools, was reviewed for the Think Twice think tank project by Joydeep Roy, Columbia University, and William J. Mathis, University of Colorado Boulder. Think Twice, a project of the National Education Policy Center (NEPC), is funded by the Great Lakes Center for Education Research and Practice.

Roy and Mathis in their review note that while the report does use data from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), “the report’s discussion of inputs, outcomes, and policy approaches is poorly grounded, leading to unsupported conclusions and policy prescriptions.” The reviewers identify that the primary shortcoming of the report is its failure to examine why there has been a staffing surge and whether it reflects a valid use of personnel.

In their conclusion, they also find that there is no linkage between the report’s call for more school choice and vouchers to remedy “over-staffing” or better education. In response, the reviewers provide an appendix list of recent evidence on voucher and charter school performance.

Find the review on the GLC website: www.greatlakescenter.org

Find the EdChoice report at: www.edchoice.org/research/back-staffing-surge/

Featured

  • Can AI Help Build Stronger Communities in Student Housing?

    Student housing success is shifting from operational performance to student experience, with belonging now at the center. A recent 2025 report underscores a growing emphasis on student well-being, community, and engagement, signaling that expectations now extend beyond logistics to ensure students feel supported in their living environments. AI is enabling that shift by reducing administrative workload and giving teams more time to focus on meaningful student engagement.

  • Johns Hopkins Starts Construction on New Residence Hall, Dining Facility

    The Homewood Campus of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Md., recently began construction on a new residence hall and dining facility, according to university news. The work involves demolishing the existing Alumni Memorial Residence Hall I, which was built in 1923, to make room for the new facility.

  • UT-San Antonio Begins Residence Hall Renovations

    The University of Texas at San Antonio recently began a $6-million renovation project to one of its residence halls, according to a news release. Originally completed in 1986, Chisolm Hall measures in at 120,860 square feet and is the oldest and largest residence hall on campus.

  • St. John Fisher University

    Classroom Revitalization – Basil Hall Room 216

    Established in 1999, the Education Design Showcase is a vehicle for showing off innovative — yet practical — solutions in planning, design, architecture, and construction. St. John Fisher University's Basil Hall Room 216 Classroom Revitalization has been recognized with an EDS 2026 Project of Distinction award in the category of Spaces.