Findings from four studies reveal that: administrators enjoy the deregulation of Chapter 2 but are concerned about audits and evaluation; a wide variety of fund distribution formulas exists; expenditures were heavy for computers; and private school participation has increased. (MLF)

The contributions are reviewed of the federal education block grant--Chapter Two of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act of 1981--to local educational improvement. Educational technology and staff and curricular development have been enhanced by the block grant, but improvements remain modest, with depth of impact traded for breadth.…

Chapter 2 of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act (ECIA) of 1981 consolidated 29 federally funded categorical programs into an education block grant available to all state education agencies and, through them, to school districts. Chapter 2's legislative purpose was to transfer authority and responsibility to state and local education…

Research indicates that Nebraska's rural elementary school districts most in need of funding through the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act's Chapter 2 block grants are least likely to apply, whereas districts with more positive demographic, economic, and educational statistics participate at a higher rate. Differing regional attitudes…

This document reports on those aspects of the findings of the National Study of Local Operations under Chapter 2 of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act of 1981, the federal education block grant, that are concerned with the relationships among the federal, state, and local governmental agencies charged with administering federal…

This paper reports on an evaluation of implementation strategies of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act (ECIA), Chapter 2 in New York State. It documents the origin of the state plan and how New York State education agencies coordinated their efforts to distribute ECIA local assistance and competitive grant monies to school districts…

The President has recently signed a package of technical amendments for Chapters 1 and 2 of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act of 1981. Among the new provisions are a number which restore some of the targeting flexibility authorizations lost with the creation of Chapter 1. One of the most significant new provisions requires State…

Most district officials interviewed expressed satisfaction with the simplified application procedures and increased district discretion offered by the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act. Perceived negative aspects included the amount of funding and possibility of a decrease, the potential neglect of research, the loss of federal…

Analysis of formula allocations plus discretionary grants of Chapter 2 funds to the 28 largest school districts reveals decreases in funding in 16 districts formerly receiving the greatest Emergency School Aid Act allocations. These districts generally experienced smaller cuts under the block grants than during the year before consolidation. (MJL)

The purposes of this paper are (1) to describe background and current content of the Agenda for the United States Department of Education's assessment of the Chapter 2 block grant; (2) to stimulate discussion of the structure and approaches proposed; and (3) to solicit ideas and comments from state, local and university researchers. To meet these…

State education agencies are allowed to retain up to 20 percent of the funds they receive from the federal government through the block grant provisions of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act. A review by the General Accounting Office (GAO) of the United States of the uses to which these retained funds were put in California and…

Federal education programs increase costs because they attach fewer strings to funds than state or local grants, and this is likely to lead to administrative empire-building. Bureaucracy tends pathologically as it grows to generate more work for itself independent of true administrative needs. Some policy implications are drawn. (MJL)

This document presents the findings from one aspect of the National Study of Local Operations under Chapter 2 of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act of 1981. The report examines the distribution of funds to school districts under Chapter 2, the federal education block grant. The introductory chapter reviews findings from early studies…

Reviews the first two years of implementation of Chapter 2 of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act in Washington state, examining political and economic background factors, state responses to block grant authority, and local implementation. Concludes that the state adapted well and quickly to the shift in federal policy. (PGD)

Draws on case studies from eight states to examine the initial operation of federal block grants. Finds that Chapter 2 worked better in its first year than its critics had predicted and that local education agencies frequently used their "united" money in innovative ways to meet local educational needs. (GC)