Kentucky spent about $1,000 less per pupil than the national average last year, but still managed to perform in the middle of the pack compared to other states across the country. According to the most recent statistics from Education Week, a widely distributed education publication, Kentucky ranked 37th in finance, spending $6,449 per-pupil compared to the national average of $7,524.In Kentucky, teachers are paid much less than the national average $36,688 compared to $43,250. The state ranks 34th in that category. Our average starting salary for teachers, $25,027, ranks 38th in the nation. Still, Kentuckys students have fared well over the past few years in national assessments. In a National Assessment of Educational Progress in 2000, eighth-graders in the state ranked 25th in math and 20th in science. Two years before, eighth-graders ranked 17th in reading and 20th in writing. Certainly, Kentucky has been lagging behind forever in funding, said Danny Spillman, finance director for Bowling Green Independent Schools. What youre seeing there indicates that were doing pretty good with what we have. And if the funding was better, we would probably do better, but thats not the only factor. Today, a coalition of Kentucky school districts filed suit against the General Assembly over school funding. The suit in Franklin County Circuit Court claims that schools are too underfunded to be able to guarantee an adequate education for all students. The coalition the Council for Better Education voted in June to file suit. The court case will be the second of its kind for the council, which successfully sued the legislature over education funding in 1985. The case culminated in 1989 with the Kentucky Supreme Court declaring the states entire public school system unconstitutional. A year later, the legislature enacted the Kentucky Educational Reform Act, which significantly increased education funding but also overhauled the public school system. The issue in 1985 was equity of funding among districts with differing levels of wealth. Eighteen years later, the issue is adequacy of funding. Since 1990, there has been a significant change in educational opportunities thanks to KERA, Dale Brown, superintendent of Warren County Public Schools, said this morning. Scores have improved on national assessments, literacy rates have increased and high school graduation rates are up, he said. Kentucky ranks 27th in high school graduation, with 71 percent of its students graduating, according to Education Week. Also on the rise are successful transitions to postsecondary education, military and the workplace, Brown added. Statewide, the percentage of successful transitions rose from 95.11 percent in 2001 to 95.67 in 2002, according to statistics released by the Kentucky Department of Education in July. All of the local high schools (Bowling Green, Greenwood, Warren Central and Warren East) are above the state average in that transition. Warren Central High School achieved a perfect score in successful transition for high school graduates. Educators say there isnt a definite link between finance and academic results, but the extra money doesnt hurt. By comparison, Tennessee spends about $1,000 less per pupil than Kentucky and 11 percent less of the states students graduated in 2002. Indiana spends about $1,500 more per student and 3 percent more of its students graduated. Indiana, which pays its teachers much better than Kentucky, also scored much higher in the NAEP. In 2000, the states eighth-graders ranked ninth in math and 13th in science. Many teachers in Kentucky cant even afford supplies for their classrooms with the budgets their school districts give them. Some use a significant chunk of their own money to make up the difference. This is something legislators say they would like to change, but in the post-Sept. 11, 2001, economy, both educators and representatives say its not realistic. I wish the state could fund more of the supplies, State House Speaker Jody Richards, D-Bowling Green told the Daily News last month. I guess there will probably always be a little of that, but certainly it should be a goal of the state to properly fund education, including supplies. In past years, he said, about 65 percent of state-generated dollars has been budgeted for education. That number has dropped to 61 percent recently. Kentucky has made great strides since the 1990 implementation of KERA, some say because the state poured money into the educational system. There was an effort to balance out the funding allotted to rich school districts and poor ones. While Kentucky still doesnt rank high in the national financing charts, Lisa Gross, spokesperson for the state Department of Education, said the balancing of those funds helped raise state performances. Its not because we provide more money, she said. Its because its more equitable. While she said the educational system in Kentucky, like many other agencies and organizations across the state, needs more money, she doesnt know if the better funding education would necessarily equal higher test scores. Theres a point where you have to spend money, but theres also a point to where it doesnt make much difference, she added. Every school district in this state needs more money. … But I dont know if that will make a difference. The Associated Press contributed information to this story.