PGCPS outlines Maryland Blueprint per-pupil funding, flags special-education and reporting challenges

Prince George's County Public Schools officials presented a detailed walk-through of the Maryland Blueprint per-pupil allotment (PPA) and school-based budgeting at the board's May 29, 2025 meeting, laying out how demographics determine funding and highlighting major gaps between program funding and actual costs.

The presentation, led by Superintendent House and Chief Financial Officer Lisa Howe with budget director Siobhan (Shavon) Smith and other finance staff, explained that state Blueprint revenue is calculated using an eligible-student count and then allocated to schools by demographics — including free-and-reduced-price meal status (compensatory education), multilingual-learner status, special-education classification and pre-K tiers. District staff told the board that foundation funding is intended to cover basic school needs but does not account for programming such as art, athletics, small-school base costs or safety and security.

District staff said the PPA varies widely across school types and even within a single school depending on each student's bundled demographics: an example in the presentation showed individual student PPAs ranging from about $9,722 for a student with only foundation funding to more than $36,000 for a student who also qualifies for multilingual-learner, compensatory education and special-education funding. Staff emphasized that at least 75% of specified Blueprint program funds must be allocated directly to schools.

Why it matters: the Blueprint is a statutory…