> In some inner city districts there's a budget of nearly $20k per student. At that rate, a few parents could get together and hire PhD's to personally tutor th

> In some inner city districts there's a budget of nearly $20k per student. At that rate, a few parents could get together and hire PhD's to personally tutor their children. It's important to consider a good chunk of the budget inflation in city districts isn't for education, because in the US, urban school systems also serve as the social service system for so many students. Medical check-ups, meals before and after school, social workers, devices like hearing aids, physical/occupational therapy - all of this gets routed through the school system because it's the best chance of delivering these services to the students, especially those from lower income families who are frequently transient. From the districts near me, the largest urban district is also where most students with the most severe disabilities (and most expensive needs) are sent from the whole region. Suburban and rural districts don't have enough of a population to serve their needs, so their education is centralized in the city.