The purpose of this study was to explore if and how urban school districts explicitly addressed the needs of Black students within their budgets. Culturally responsive school leadership was used to examine district leaders' budgetary actions. Using content analysis methods and randomized purposeful sampling, we reviewed budget plans from districts…

This mixed-methods study investigated how school districts in Missouri allocate funds to schools and the extent to which current practices promote equitable distribution of resources to meet student needs, especially for historically under-resourced populations. The study surveyed a sample of school district superintendents and chief financial…

Experiential education, the process of providing students with applied learning opportunities within and outside the classroom, is rife with organizational complexity. This article examines Ontario's Strategic Mandate Agreements using qualitative content analysis to see how conceptions and communications of experiential learning have changed over…

The primary source of federal aid to elementary and secondary education is the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). The ESEA was initially adopted in 1965 (P.L. 89-10), and was most recently reauthorized and amended by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA; P.L. 114-95), which authorized appropriations for ESEA programs through FY2020.…

The study underlying this new report, "Revisiting California's Invisible Achievement Gap," examined trends in the state's publicly available education data for school years 2014-15 through 2022-23, described 10 state-required local control and accountability plans (LCAPs) for school year 2022-23, and incorporated context for these…

In 2022, Tennessee overhauled its education funding formula to improve outcomes for the 1 million students in the state. The Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement Act (TISA) was designed to simplify the existing funding formula and more equitably allocate resources to schools. Bellwether's case study, "After the Policy Win: First-Year…

Understanding how the District of Columbia (DC) funds District of Columbia Public School (DCPS) students and DC public charter school students is essential to ensuring all students receive the support they need as COVID-19 pandemic-era federal funds expire. The recent rise in the Uniform Per Student Funding Formula (UPSFF) and the boost in the…

The Accountability Plan is an annual report that is closely aligned with the Board of Governors' 2025 System Strategic Plan. This report enhances the System's commitment to accountability and strategic planning by fostering greater coordination between University Boards of Trustees and the Board of Governors regarding each institution's direction…

In 1993, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts dramatically overhauled its K-12 education system and created a new school finance formula, building an educational accountability structure to ensure every child has access to a high-quality education. The Massachusetts Education Reform Act (MERA) established academic standards in core subjects, mandated…