NC Weighted Student Funding Simulator

North Carolina Weighted Student Funding Simulator

Adjust the base amount and weights below to see how various weighted student funding formulas would change total and per-pupil funding. Data represented is from the 2024-25 school year.

District

Model:

Total Per-Pupil Difference

—

Current Total: — · Current Per-Pupil: — · ADM: —

Base

Base Amount$5,133

$5,000$10,000

Applied to total ADM.

Student Weights

Poverty Weight40%

5%60%

SAIPE uses census-based poverty estimates; EDS uses NCDPI’s economically disadvantaged student calculation.

Multilingual Learner Weight17.5%

0%30%

Applied to English learner ADM.

Students with Disabilities

Tier 1110%

Tier 2130%

Tier 3150%

Tier 1: LD, SI, OH, IDMI. Tier 2: AU, IDMO, DD, MU. Tier 3: IDSE, ED, HI, OI, VI, DB, DF, TB.

CTE Weight16.1%

0%25%

Applied to grades 8–12 ADM.

Gifted Weight5%

0%15%

Applied to 5% of ADM.

District Weights

Concentrated Poverty5%

0%15%

Eligibility band25% – 35%

low: 25%high: 35%

Weight scales from 0 at the low threshold to full weight at the high threshold (and above). Sliding moves the whole band left or right; the band width stays fixed (10 points for SAIPE, 40 points for EDS). SAIPE defaults to 25–35%; EDS defaults to 40–80%.

Sparsity25%

0%30%

Density eligibility (ADM/sq mi)≤ 12

Weight scales up as ADM per square mile falls below the eligibility threshold, reaching full weight at 1 ADM per square mile or fewer.

Small County0%

0%30%

Eligibility threshold (total ADM)≤ 3,300

Defaults to 0% and is not included in the formula unless raised. Weight scales up as total district ADM falls below the eligibility threshold, reaching full weight at 700 ADM or fewer. When active, this is added to the Rural weight row alongside Sparsity.

Statewide: Simulated vs. Current Formula

Component	Total	Per-Pupil	Total Difference	Per-Pupil Difference

Formula Total reflects the sum of the base, weight components, and the Low Wealth Allotment above; it does not include any additional funding outside of the included metrics. The Formula Total row is compared against current corresponding allotments.

Poverty Weight includes both the individual student poverty weight and the concentrated poverty weight. It is compared to the sum of the current Disadvantaged Student Supplemental Funding and At-Risk allotments.

Rural weight includes only Sparsity at the default. If the Small County weight is added to the formula, then the Rural weight includes both Sparsity and Small County amounts. It is compared to the current Small County allotment.

Low Wealth Allotment is a fixed pass-through carried at its current value. It is included in both the current and simulated totals unchanged and is not affected by any weight or slider above.

Hold Harmless represents the amount by which current funding exceeds the simulated formula total, shown separately and not added into the formula.

For full methodology and a list of all allotments used in the current total, visit ncforum.org/wsf.

Suggested citation:

Public School Forum of North Carolina. (September 2026). North Carolina Weighted Student Funding Simulator. https://www.ncforum.org/wsf-simulator.