Thanks to @LarryFerlazzo on Twitter for calling attention to the great infographic below from DegreeScout. It compares US ed spending to other federal spending, such as defense, the War on Drugs, Food Stamp Overpayment, etc.

What’s wrong with this picture? The amount of money that is declared as “Unreconciled Transactions” (2003) is roughly HALF of what we spend on education! That’s the best that we can do? Every two years, we lose track of (or fail to report) more money than we spend on our children’s education in any 12-month period? Wow.

Think of that in household budget terms.  Unreconciled Transactions being equivalent to the loose change that my family loses in the couch and under the car seats, we would only be able to spend about $50/year on our daughter’s education! I think her college owes me a refund, btw…

I’m not sure the image I’m trying to embed below is working right, so if it’s a mess, go to the link above and take a look at this infographic. It’s very enlightening.

Created By DegreeScout Online Schools