This article investigates trends in the relative wealth of the richest school districts in the United States between 2000 and 2015. For the purposes of discussion, I focus on the top 1% of districts. I argue that trends in school funding for the richest districts deserve greater attention from education researchers. Districts in the top 1% of the…

This article explores the passage and failure of the 1973 Illinois Resource Equalizer formula which was designed to reduce disparities in school finance by breaking the connection between local wealth and school revenue. It argues that two sets of goals drove passage of the new law--equity and local property tax relief--and they came into conflict…

The purpose of this study was to examine whether district funding influences the leadership work of school principals. This study explored the role of the elementary principal in four school districts. Two districts were located in communities with an affluent population and the schools had an abundance of fiscal resources; the other two districts…

This study examined the correlation between student achievement, the financial health of a diverse sample of public Illinois elementary school districts, and their local wealth. Research suggested that the wealth of the district within itself does not affect student performance. Specific possible associated factors included instructional methods,…

Illinois confronts a financial crisis that threatens its capacity to implement the state's long-fought-for plan for improving our education system. Two-thirds of our school districts are now deficit-spending. Districts have dismissed at least 6,400 educators and aides, closed schools, lengthened bus routes, and reduced programs in everything from…

The purpose of this study was to identify financial management strategies that school business officials have found most successful in achieving school district financial stability. To accomplish, 208 Illinois school business officials in six counties: Cook, DuPage, Kane, Lake, McHenry, and Will counties, excluding Chicago School District 299,…

The superintendency has historically been vulnerable to high turnover. This paper presents findings of a study that examined the turnover among two groups of Illinois superintendents: those in school districts with severe financial problems, and those in districts without such problems. The purpose was to determine the relationship between…

A 1996 U.S. General Accounting Office report indicates one-third of the nation's schools need $111 billion worth of repairs or partial replacement. Local school districts cannot keep up with enrollment increases or construction costs and will receive little help from federal or state governments. Capital improvement funding inequities are heating…

Examines the effects of the Illinois Property Tax Extension Limitation Law on the revenue growth of collar counties and suburban school districts in Cook County. Finds that the law negatively affects revenue growth. Also finds, for example, that a majority of school business officials are motivated to increase their districts' bonded indebtedness.…

lllinois's school finance reform goals may be achieved by providing property tax relief and increasing state funding out of income tax receipts, relying primarily on the state's growth dividend. Distributing the largesse of growth to poor districts over time minimizes richer citizens' sense of fiscal loss, making reform more politically palatable.…

This special report reviews problems in Illinois' education funding system and discusses potential solutions to these problems. The report notes that the fundamental problem with the current education finance system is an over-reliance on local property taxes. Although property taxes are a relatively stable and lucrative revenue source,…

This paper describes Illinois' program for warning school districts of impending financial troubles and the reactions of superintendents to the state's "early warning" program. In February 192, the State of Illinois issued a list of 111 school districts, out of a total of 946 districts, that were on the Financial Watch list. Of…

This report documents a study that examined the current financial picture of public education in 2003. Data for the study were collected from 188 surveys of selected school superintendents in Indiana, Illinois, and Texas. The superintendents were asked how the financial condition of their state and their school districts compared to a few years…

The system for financing education in Illinois fails to deliver sufficient resources to the school districts that need them most. Although no individual or administrative unit acts to deprive particular groups, the system as a whole does. Using Census figures, state and local tax records and information from the Illinois Board of Education, this…

New Trier High School in Winnetka (Illinois) and DuSable High School in Chicago illustrate the gross inequities in the state's public education system. Wealthy New Trier is able to spend twice as much per student in an environment that is already advantaged in every respect, from teacher salaries to courses offered. (SLD)