Bright Futures is a Florida-state-funded scholarship program that pays either 75% or 100%, depending on the scholarship level, for up to 132 credits hours in a 120-credit-hour program. Prepaid plans are purchased for a student prior to their attending college, and usually when the future college student is a young child. The plans guarantee the…

This report briefly summarizes the background, the criteria and procedures for evaluation, the findings, and the recommendations of the Tennessee School Finance Equity Study that, during the two year period ending in November, 1979, examined Tennessee's present program for financing the public schools, kindergarten through grade 12. The purpose of…

The system used in Illinois for financing public education underwent major reform in 1973. At that time four alternative formulas for determining equalization aid levels were established. In 1980 three of these formulas were eliminated and only a modified version of the Resource Equalizer formula remains in use. This report provides an overview of…

This description of the Tennessee equalization plan consists of (1) a description of Tennessee's current public school finance program; (2) recommendations for change in the existing program; (3) a description of the conformance of the recommended changes to the equity guidelines developed by the United States Commissioner of Education pursuant to…

This discussion begins with the five major political values that were reflected in the 1973 reform of the Illinois school aid system. The lawmakers wanted to spend state dollars for education in a way that would improve student and taxpayer equity, maintain local control of school districts, aid poverty-impacted districts, not discriminate against…

This handbook is one in a series prepared for use at workshops designed to help teachers, administrators, and legislators understand and deal with the intricacies of school finance equalization plans in their states. Michigan's education finance plan is discussed in this particular book. Chapter 1 discusses how Michigan's plan undertakes its…

This report updates developments relating to public school finance legislation in Texas during a special summer legislative session in 1984. Discussion focuses on House Bill 72, which increased teachers salaries, distributed state aid more equitably, increased equalization aid, mandated new programs, and increased state taxes. (TE)

Utah and its school districts share the responsibility for providing adequate school facilities, including developing feasible alternatives to new construction. School facilities are financed primarily with local property taxes supplemented with limited state aid. During summer 1982, Utah's 40 school districts projected their highest priority…

This paper analyzes three higher education grant programs in South Dakota: the Indian Education Grant; the Student Incentive Grant (SIG); and the Tuition Equalization Grant (TEG). The Indian Education Grant was created in 1949 by the legislature to provide 30 higher education scholarships for Indians. Since its inception, the Indian Education…

Patterns of state aid for capital outlay and debt services range from full state assumption to no state participation. This paper, one of two related documents, examines current issues in state aid for capital outlay and then details five schemes employed by states that participated in the financing of local school building construction. The five…

This paper, one of two related documents, is a summary of research presented to the Arizona state legislature concerning the participation of various states in the financing of capital outlay for school building construction. Along with a description of the various support programs, consideration is given to the questions of who determines need,…

Utah's school districts receive equalization aid under the state's school finance program. Funds are distributed on the basis of weighted pupil units and are allocated among a number of specific programs. This document consists of tables and graphs displaying the allocation of these funds to Utah's 40 school districts during the 1982-83 school…

The Arizona state plan for a program designed to provide educational assistance and support services to an anticipated 15,310 migrant children is presented for fiscal year 1981. The plan administration, agency organizational structure, and authority and program definitions are explained. The population to be served, assessment of special…

This report describes the process and outcomes of implementing Oregon state legislation (Senate Bill 814 in 1991), which restructured the state's special education funding system. The new system provides districts with grants that are twice the regular per student allocation for every identified special education student up to 11 percent of the…

Support for primary-age, at-risk children is examined in the context of renewed national interest in intervention programs for this population. This report describes alternative approaches to identifying characteristics of at-risk students and then presents a summary of states' definitions of "handicapped" or "disadvantaged."…