Education ensures that children from all backgrounds have equal opportunities to succeed. Yet, the education provided for many K-12 students in the state of Texas may not be equal due to the allocation of school funds under House Bill 3 (H.B. 3). To date, the Revenue to Population (RTP) Index and other normalized statistical metrics have not been…

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) requires states to have statewide accountability systems to help provide all children significant opportunity to receive a fair, equitable, and high-quality education, and to close educational achievement gaps. These systems must meet certain federal requirements, but states have some discretion in…

This resource was prepared in response to a request for information about how the six Phase 3 ELC States (Georgia, Kentucky, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Vermont) are leveraging ELC funds and other State funds to support inclusion. This information will be helpful to other States as they consider how to continue to increase the quality…

Since 2010, the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEO) has periodically administered the "Strong Foundations" survey, which documents the content, structure, and effective use of state postsecondary student unit record systems (PSURSs). This report highlights the results of the fourth administration of the survey,…

California is in the midst of a major K-12 reform effort. In 2010, the state adopted the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), which outline what students should know in mathematics and English. In 2013, it adopted tests of the new standards developed by the Smarter Balanced Assessment Collaborative (SBAC). These tests will be administered beginning…

All of the 15 states in this study have recently been involved in school accountability system reform. Since 2011, the states have taken advantage of a federal program to give them flexibility around certain accountability requirements of the "No Child Left Behind Act" of 2001 (NCLB), the most recent reauthorization of the Elementary and…

Title VII provides funding for the education of American Indian/Alaska Native students based on a formula grant available to school districts, charter schools, and local education agencies (LEAs). This report explores why some eligible schools and districts do not apply for federal Title VII, potentially resulting in American Indian/Alaska Native…

On September 8, 2011, the President proposed the American Jobs Act to Congress, including investments of $25 billion to renovate and modernize at least 35,000 of America's public schools; $5 billion to upgrade infrastructure at America's community colleges; and $30 billion to keep hundreds of thousands of educators in the classroom. This report…

This brief provides a summary and analysis of a survey taken in the fall of 2005. The survey was conducted with a distribution of questionnaires to all of the district superintendents in the state of Arizona. Responses were received from 116 individuals out of a population of 227. These superintendents represented all three types of school…

This paper explores the impact of the Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA) of 1990 on the funding and allocation of resources to special education. Overall, the results indicate that the revenues generated for the special education system by KERA are approximately equal to marginal costs of special education services statewide. However, there is…

From Fiscal Year (FY) 1967 through FY 1974, the allocation for each state's Title I migrant education grant was determined through a formula utilizing estimates of the migratory agricultural labor population of each state. Until the Migrant Student Record Transfer System was fully validated in FY 1975, there were no totally reliable counts of…

This paper examines the politics of special education finance reform in three states (Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Vermont) that have enacted substantial legislative change within the past 5 years. These case studies were extracted from presentations made by the three state directors of special education at a 1994 conference. Each case study includes…

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…

This paper traces the historical context of the passage and implementation of Vermont's Act 230 in 1990, which initiated a new special education funding system to increase equity, predictability, and flexibility in program design as well as to ensure placement neutrality. Specific objectives of the funding system included increasing the use of…

An overview of the Title I Migrant Education Program is provided through summaries of its legislative history, program administration and management, Title I Local Projects/Title I Migrant Education Projects, program goals and objectives, instructional services, supportive services, Migrant Student Record Transfer System (MSRTS), formulas for…