notes on taxpayer funded tutors

Nakylah Carter, Jeffrey S. Solochek:

The big story: Florida is one of 24 states, including Washington D.C., that currently funds K-12 tutoring directly, according to a new review published today by Stanford University. 

The university’s third annual National Student Support Accelerator looks throughout the nation to analyze how states support high-impact tutoring and the policies and funding they have in place for it.

High-impact tutoring is an immersive form of tutoring based on relationship building and individualized instruction known to improve education outcomes and even school attendance, according to lead author of the brief Kathy Bendheim.

“Our mission is to accelerate access to high-impact tutoring to students in need,” Bendheim said. 

Of the 18 states that ran competitive tutoring grant programs last school year, Florida was one of the 17 that kept them going this year.

The Florida Legislature established the Florida Tutoring Advantage program in 2024 and which is administered by the University of Florida’s Lastinger Center for Learning. In last school year alone, the review detailed the state funded $22 million toward the program, including $2 million for AI-enhanced learning support. 

Seventy-three percent of districts throughout the state participated in the program last school year that served more than 46,000 students. This year, the state appropriation sits at $14 million.