Since the implementation of IDEA in 1975, as spending on education has continued to grow, a large portion of that spending has been dedicated to students with special needs. This study uses a panel dataset of local and intermediate school districts to examine the complex special education funding and delivery scheme in the State of Michigan. Using…

In this study, 79 local school district leaders from the state of Texas were contacted and asked for their input relating to strategic practices used during an economic downturn. Findings describe how the recent funding cuts affected the varied districts; how the districts fared in comparison with similar districts in the area; steps the district…

In 2009, the U.S. Department of Education made grants to eleven school districts under the Technical Assistance for Student Assignment Plans (TASAP) program. The impetus for the program came from the Council of Great City Schools, which was concerned that school districts would respond to a recent Supreme Court decision by dismantling policies…

Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD), California's thirteenth largest school district, faces a looming deficit and must make significant budget adjustments to avoid state intervention. This case study explores how the district reached this point, how its finances compare with other districts in Sacramento County, and what the…

Newly implemented state policy dealing with school finance created several consequences in a school district to include school configuration and restructuring of educational programs. This case describes how a new school finance law changes the entire dynamic of a school district and its newly appointed superintendent. The superintendent…

New federal regulations (State Plans to Ensure Equitable Access to Excellent Educators)1 place increased pressure on states and local public school districts to improve their measurement and reporting of gaps in teacher qualifications across schools and the children they serve. Yet a sole focus on resource disparities between schools within a…

The Summary of the Annual Statistical Report of Schools (SASRS) report provides Local Education Agencies (LEAs) and other interested parties the data submitted to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) by the Agency of Education. Consequently, data in SASRS are organized according to federal definitions. NCES uses this information to…

Massive funding cuts to public education took place around the country following the Great Recession. Many school districts were forced to conduct teacher layoffs at a larger scale than any other time in recent history. We show that prior to a district intervention, the layoff process disproportionately impacted historically disadvantaged students…

This article seeks to deepen our understanding of the nature and quality of democratic participation in educational reform by examining the first-year implementation of California's Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) mandating civic engagement in district decision-making. Drawing on democratic theory, empirical literature, and data from 10…

Income disparity continues to increase across the United States as more students are coming from environments of low-income homes, racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds limited English proficiency, and high mobility rates which have contributed to disparity in educational achievement. The overarching question that drove this study was…

This report is a longevity, simulational study that looks at how the ratio of state support to local support effects the number of school districts that breaks the common school's funding formula which in turns effects the equity of distribution to the common schools. After nearly two decades of adequately supporting the funding formula, Oklahoma…

How do children fare in the federal budget? Investments in children's health, education, and overall well-being pay high dividends for taxpayers and the economy as a whole. Without adequately funded education, nutrition, housing, early education and care, and other basic supports, the foundation of children's well-being is at risk. This report 1)…

This study examines differences in spending in school districts across geographic locales in Minnesota and factors that might contribute to these differences. The study finds that district spending per student in 2008/09 varied across locale types in Minnesota. These differences are largely accounted for by differences in regional characteristics…

Weighted student funding (WSF) is a multifaceted school finance, management, and governance reform that is gaining attention. While WSF has a number of goals, its primary objective is to redress intra-district funding inequities. This article draws on a mixed-methods study of WSF in Prince George's County Public Schools to examine the initiative's…

This "First Look" contains national and state totals of revenues and expenditures for public elementary and secondary education for school year 2013-14. This "First Look" includes revenues by source and expenditures by function and object, including current expenditures per pupil and instructional expenditures per pupil. This…