Even if it accomplishes nothing else, the "weighted student formula" — the new calculus for figuring how much money each campus gets every year — will make it painfully clear just how much our schools get shortchanged.

A teacher position used by a Kane'ohe complex of schools for a popular drama enrichment program has crumbled under the schools' other budgetary pressures, and that fact is symptomatic of the problem. Schools are being asked to do too much with too little.

The drama program had been an effort to build on the success of the popular Castle Performing Arts Center curriculum by providing additional outreach to fourth-graders. It's frustrating to see a local success story such as the growth of theater in the Windward schools — CPAC recently won a national honor — set back in any way.

Similarly, money that had been earmarked for other "enrichment" teaching duties was redirected back to the general education kitty, funds that were then divvied up among individual schools. And these schools, especially the smaller ones, are struggling to cover the essential needs of their students.

The dynamics of school finances are changing, and this change is presenting each campus with tough decisions. There are ways to compensate for lost funds in the short term — schools can seek grants to pay for some educational programs — and educators must collaborate to adapt.

But money can only be stretched so far, even by the most creative among us. Soon it may become clear that lawmakers will have to adjust the formula to increase each school's allotment.

Schools might be able to avoid leaving a child behind, but they should get what they need to propel the gifted and talented children ahead, as well.

Where will that extra money come from? Is any of it being wasted in centralized administration?

That's something our leaders have to investigate closely.

In the short term, Hawai'i has to hope that our educators on the front lines can use all their ingenuity and cooperation to pool their resources effectively. But their effort should be matched with some clear thinking by lawmakers who can find a way to direct the money where it needs to go.