Persistent budget constraints make "equitably" allocating existing resources more important than ever. Conversations regarding equitable funding typically overlook categorical programs, targeted initiatives typically focused on supporting historically underserved student groups, such as veterans, former foster youth, single parents, and…

The COVID-19 pandemic posed many challenges to student learning, classroom instruction, and the management of school systems. Media, think tanks, and education groups have warned of a post-COVID fiscal cliff for K-12 schools after the $190 billion from the federal government in the form of the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief…

In 1994, Michigan voters approved a ballot initiative that transferred the power in Michigan's education system from local communities to the state. Proposal A succeeded in slowing the growth of local property taxes and narrowing the gap between the richest and poorest districts in Michigan. However, due to a decade of sluggish economic growth,…

Spurred by a deep recession and large budget shortfalls, the California Legislature in 2009 enacted what was arguably the largest change to California's school finance system in decades--relaxing spending restrictions on more than 40 categorical programs through 2012-13, extended later to 2014-15. Categorical funding, which gives school districts…

In 2009 the Obama administration announced a focused commitment to turn around 5,000 of the United States' chronically lowest-performing public schools as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). This commitment came with $3 billion in funding for the School Improvement Grant program, or SIG, along with new guidelines to ensure…

With most parents now in the workforce, the demand for high-quality out-of-school time (OST) opportunities for children and youth continues to grow across the country. An estimated 14.3 million children and youth return each day to an empty home unsupervised, and with no opportunities to constructively occupy their time. By building strong,…

In recent years, policy makers and educators in the U.S. have begun to show considerable interest in the concept of weighted student funding as a means of financing primary and secondary schools. Weighted student funding (WSF) has three main elements. Money follows students on a per student basis to the schools they attend, the per student amount…

Policy makers and educators in the U.S. have recently shown considerable interest in the concept of weighted student funding (WSF) as a means of financing primary and secondary schools. WSF appeals both to conservatives, who see it as a way to promote parental choice and school autonomy, and to progressives, who are attracted by the call of extra…

One of a series of discussion papers on the history, governance, operation, and development of the State University of New York (SUNY) community college system, this paper traces New York's efforts to ensure proper allocation and budgeting of state assistance in an era of increasing higher education costs. After explaining the formula for state…

School finance has traditionally concentrated on the distribution of resources to school districts, focusing primarily on the equitable distribution of funds within a state. In recent years, more attention has been paid to the issue of productivity--how effectively school districts use the funds they receive to provide education to students. This…

School finance has traditionally concentrated on the distribution of resources to school districts, focusing primarily on the equitable distribution of funds within a state. In recent years, more attention has been paid to the issue of productivity-how effectively school districts use the funds they receive to provide education to students. This…

Discusses changes in the state steering of universities and the impact of these changes on internal university management in Finland, where some unique university management procedures are in use. Of particular interest is the impact of the increase in external funding and the increasing competition for state funds. (SLD)

This paper examines changes in California's school finance system over the past 35 years. It focuses specifically on the growth of categorical program funding. The study assesses the nature and magnitude of changes, the causes of those changes, the significance of those changes for the capacity of schools to provide high quality educational…

Issues in educational finance in elementary-secondary education for the 1990s are examined in this paper, which asserts that demographic and economic changes have increased the need for additional resources in education. Recent fiscal trends include an increase in resource inequities among the states and a mismatch between resource needs and…

This study argues that community college funding and resource development must become a long-term core function of the institution due to changes in the source of revenue for community colleges. The research problem was: (1) to identify and describe how organizational structure and management activities have changed in four community colleges in…