[douche]

Special education students are more expensive to educate than bright students.

You give a gifted student a $100 book and let them get after it.

You give a troubled behavior student with multiple LDs a full-time ed tech at $30k per year salary minimum, or whatever else is required, by federal law, to fulfill their IEPs.

[15thandwhatever]

Ugh, I didn't stop to consider the special education component (and its cost). That's my bad.

This reminds me of a similar theory in regards to affluent towns with low taxes that have minimal social programs, that "export" their elderly to nearby cities with higher taxes but have programs such as Paratransit and Meals-on-Wheels.