I’ve heard the arguments from school board trustees that they have to build and they have to compete and that nicer schools build school pride. But there isn’t any evidence that all the building and all the spending are actually increasing student performance, and higher debt would seem to go in hand with greater issues. Dallas ISD, for instance, leads the state’s school districts in outstanding debt (more than $2.5 billion to date), and Dallas ISD doesn’t really have the best fiscally responsible history.