In 2014, parents of students at Horace Mann Elementary School in Northwest Washington, D.C., spent over $ 470,000 of their own money to support the school's programs.1 With just under 290 students enrolled for the 2013 - 14 school year, this means that, in addition to public funding, Horace Mann spent about an extra $ 1,600 for each student.2 Those dollars — equivalent to 9 percent of the District of Columbia's
average per - pupil spending3 — paid for new art and music teachers and classroom aides to allow for small group instruction.4 During the same school year, the parent - teacher association, or PTA, raised another $ 100,000 in parent donations and collected over $ 200,000 in membership dues, which it used for
similar initiatives in future years.5 Not surprisingly, Horace Mann is one of the most affluent schools in the city, with only 6 percent of students coming from low -
income families.6