An Education Catalyst Investigation into the Public School System

Merchant Ship Collective | The Education Catalyst Series

The Education Catalyst is a Merchant Ship Collective investigative newsletter series exploring whether the U.S. public education system is failing due to dysfunction—or functioning exactly as designed through money, politics, institutional self-protection, and workforce pipelines. Each issue examines what the system claims, what it actually produces, and how students, families, teachers, and communities are impacted. I also highlight real-world solutions and legal rights that can help rebuild education from the inside out.

The Conversation We Avoid Because It’s “Uncomfortable”

There’s a phrase that gets thrown around every time someone challenges public education:

“Schools don’t have enough money.”

And yes—many schools truly do need more resources.

But the problem isn’t only about how much money exists.

The real problem is this:

Public education has become an industry, and industries don’t exist without profit.

That doesn’t mean every district is corrupt.
It doesn’t mean every administrator is greedy.
It doesn’t mean every program is useless.

But it does mean something important:

Once education becomes a marketplace, student needs become secondary to system survival.

And that’s where everything starts to fall apart.

Because when money is on the line, truth becomes a liability.

What the System Says

Public education claims it is built to:

• serve students

• provide equal opportunity

• close achievement gaps

• support families

• prepare students for careers

• ensure accountability

Most districts also claim they are “data-driven.”

And they are.

But here’s the problem:

The system often uses data not to help students—but to justify spending.

In other words, data becomes the marketing language of education.

And once that happens, the system doesn’t ask:

“What do students need?”

It asks:

“What can we buy that proves we’re trying?”

The Marketplace Model of Public Education

Here’s what many people don’t understand:

Public schools don’t just educate.

They purchase.

They contract.

They outsource.

They buy subscriptions.

They hire consultants.

They pay vendors.

They build technology ecosystems.

And every single one of those decisions creates financial incentives.

So now we have to ask:

Who profits from public education spending?

The answer is: many people.

• curriculum companies

• testing companies

• professional development organizations

• EdTech platforms

• assessment publishers

• online learning vendors

• student behavior programs

• SEL program providers

• consulting firms

• staffing agencies

• substitute contracting companies

• grant-writing consultants

• legal teams

• insurance and risk-management groups

And when the system becomes dependent on these outside providers, the system starts behaving like a business.

Which means it starts prioritizing:

• branding

• risk management

• customer satisfaction optics

• compliance

• political relationships

• “strategic initiatives”

• marketable programs

That is not student-centered education.

That is institutional behavior.

When Education Spending Becomes a Public Relations Strategy

Here is one of the most common patterns in public education today:

A school district has real problems:

• low literacy

• student behavior crises

• teacher turnover

• absenteeism

• special education compliance concerns

• parent distrust

Instead of addressing the root cause, the district buys something.

A new curriculum.
A new platform.
A new program.
A new “training series.”
A new consultant team.

And then they announce it publicly.

Not because it will fix the problem…

…but because it signals that they are doing something.

Spending becomes proof of effort.

But proof of effort is not proof of effectiveness.

And teachers know this better than anyone.

Because teachers are the ones required to implement program after program after program—while the underlying conditions remain unchanged.

The Consultant Culture

There is a growing trend in education that deserves more attention:

School districts increasingly rely on consultants to solve problems they refuse to solve internally.

Consultants are often hired to:

• review curriculum

• evaluate behavior systems

• improve “instructional alignment”

• create improvement plans

• build equity frameworks

• train staff on classroom management

• analyze achievement gaps

Sometimes consultants help.

But often, consultant culture functions as:

A shield.

Because if the district hires a consultant, leadership can claim progress without changing the structure that caused the problem.

And if the plan fails?

It becomes the teacher’s fault for not implementing it “with fidelity.”

That word—fidelity—might be one of the most damaging words in modern education.

Because it assumes the program is correct and the people are the problem.

The Curriculum Industry

Curriculum adoption is big business.

A district can spend enormous amounts of money purchasing:

• instructional materials

• digital licenses

• student workbooks

• online learning platforms

• training packages

• coaching services

And yet, teachers frequently report the same experience:

The curriculum doesn’t match student needs.
The pacing is unrealistic.
The materials don’t work for students with learning gaps.
The expectations ignore reality.

But because money has been invested, the district cannot admit failure.

So instead of asking:

“Is this working?”

They ask:

“How do we make it look like it’s working?”

Technology Is a Business Pipeline

EdTech is not just a tool.

It is an economy.

Schools are now deeply integrated into digital platforms for:

• attendance tracking

• grading systems

• behavior documentation

• IEP compliance

• communication apps

• online curriculum subscriptions

• student testing platforms

• intervention tracking software

The more districts rely on digital systems, the more student learning becomes dependent on vendor access.

And the more student data becomes integrated into third-party ecosystems.

Which brings us back to one of the most important truths of this series:

When schools become dependent on vendors, education becomes a pipeline—not a community service.

Facts & Statistics

The rise of education as an industry is not just a feeling. It is measurable.

• The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) reports that total expenditures for public elementary and secondary schools in the United States reached hundreds of billions annually, reflecting the scale of the system and the size of the education economy (NCES, 2022).

• NCES reports that U.S. public school spending per pupil has increased over time, even though learning outcomes remain inconsistent across regions and demographics (NCES, 2022).

• The RAND Corporation has documented teacher burnout and turnover as ongoing national problems, and research repeatedly links teacher retention to working conditions—not simply student behavior (Steiner et al., 2025).

• NAEP results show that despite decades of spending and reform initiatives, national academic performance remains uneven, and recent years have revealed serious declines and slow recovery (NCES, 2024).

When we look at the data, we see something alarming:

We are spending more, buying more, and implementing more programs…

…but outcomes remain unstable.

Which means we have to ask:

Are we investing in students… or investing in systems that profit from “fixing” students?

The Quiet Reality: Failure Creates Demand

This is one of the most uncomfortable truths of public education as a marketplace:

When schools fail, the market grows.

Because every failure creates a new product opportunity:

• low reading scores → literacy program purchase

• behavior problems → SEL package purchase

• teacher turnover → recruitment consultants

• discipline issues → restorative justice training contracts

• achievement gaps → equity consultant teams

• absenteeism → engagement software and family outreach apps

If education is always “in crisis,” the market never runs out of customers.

And if the market never runs out of customers, the crisis becomes profitable.

That doesn’t mean anyone wants children to fail.

But it does mean the system is built in a way where failure is financially sustainable.

That is a dangerous structure.

Real-World Solutions, Not Slogans

If communities want real reform, we must demand transparency in spending.

Not just budget reports filled with codes.

Transparency in plain language.

Solutions for School Districts

• Publish vendor contracts in public-facing summaries. Families deserve to know what is being purchased and why.

• Require outcome-based reporting. If a program is bought, the district should publish measurable results after one year.

• Limit initiative overload. Districts should adopt fewer programs and evaluate them honestly.

• Create teacher-led curriculum review committees. Teachers are the ones implementing programs; their voices must matter.

Solutions for School Leaders

• Stop purchasing “quick fixes” without structural reform.
  No program can replace adequate staffing, clear expectations, and consistent discipline support.

• Measure success through student skill growth, not program completion.

Solutions for Teachers

• Ask one question every time a new initiative is introduced:
  “What is being removed to make time for this?”

• Document implementation barriers.
  If the program fails, teachers should not carry the blame for system-level dysfunction.

Solutions for Families

• Attend board meetings and ask direct spending questions.
  Examples:

  • “How much did we spend on this curriculum platform?”

  • “What data shows it improved student learning?”

  • “How many staff hours were spent training for it?”

  • “What was removed from the schedule to implement it?”

Solutions for Communities

• Demand a spending audit that includes outcomes.
  Education spending should be treated like infrastructure spending:
  If the bridge still collapses, we don’t keep hiring new consultants—we rebuild the structure.

The Anchor Truth

Here is the truth we must keep repeating:

If education was designed to protect children and communities, it would not punish the people who advocate for them.

When teachers question spending priorities, they are often labeled as negative.

When parents ask about vendor contracts, they are treated as troublemakers.

When staff demand accountability, they are seen as threats.

That is not how a community-centered system behaves.

That is how an institution behaves when it is protecting its business model.

Call to Action

This week, I challenge every reader—teacher, parent, and community member—to ask one powerful question:

“What is our district spending money on, and what outcomes are we getting in return?”

Then take it one step further:

Request the receipts.

Not rumors. Not assumptions. Not “we feel like it.”

Actual data.

Actual contracts.

Actual measurable results.

Because accountability starts where secrecy ends.

Resource Section

Below are reliable resources for tracking education spending, national performance, and teacher workforce trends.

Public School Spending and Finance

• National Center for Education Statistics (NCES): School Finance Data
  https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cma

National Academic Performance

• NAEP (The Nation’s Report Card)
  https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/

Teacher Workforce Trends

• RAND: State of the American Teacher Reports
  https://www.rand.org/education-and-labor/projects/state-of-the-american-teacher.html

Federal Education Spending Oversight

• U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) Education Reports
  https://www.gao.gov/education

Closing

Public education is not just a system of classrooms.

It is a system of contracts.

A system of vendors.

A system of programs.

A system of spending.

And when spending becomes the proof of progress, the system becomes addicted to buying solutions instead of building them.

The truth is not that schools don’t care.

The truth is that schools are being run like institutions trying to survive.

But children don’t need institutions.

They need communities.

They need stability.

They need literacy.

They need safety.

They need adults who are allowed to advocate without fear.

And they need a system that stops treating education like a marketplace.

— Lyndsay LaBrier
Merchant Ship Collective | The Education Catalyst

References

National Center for Education Statistics. (2022). Public school expenditures. U.S. Department of Education. https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cma

National Center for Education Statistics. (2023, August 30). Rising absenteeism since onset of COVID-19 and its impact on NAEP 2022 score declines. U.S. Department of Education. https://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/blog/attendance_and_naep_2022_score_declines.aspx

National Center for Education Statistics. (2024). The nation’s report card: Mathematics (2024). National Assessment of Educational Progress. U.S. Department of Education. https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/reports/mathematics/2024/

Steiner, E. D., Doan, S., Woo, A., Kaufman, J. H., & Berdie, L. (2025). The state of the American teacher 2025: How teachers’ well-being, pay, and career intentions are changing. RAND Corporation. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RRA1108-16.html

U.S. Government Accountability Office. (n.d.). Education. https://www.gao.gov/education