States are increasingly adopting changes to K-12 funding systems in order to promote and encourage student engagement in secondary-level career and technical education (CTE). Two of the most prevalent reforms include: a) establishing tiered weights for CTE in school funding formulas based on the connection between a program of study and workforce…

School finance court cases have proceeded one or more times in all but two states. Plaintiffs ask the courts to rule that the existing funding formula is unconstitutional under state constitutions, and the defendants call for continuation of the existing finance formula. By compiling and analyzing the universe of such cases, we can accurately…

The study examined how institutional and student characteristics may influence the earning of student success points by state-supported community colleges under the Texas performance funding system that was fully implemented in the 2016-2017 biennium. Texas has historically funded community colleges based on an enrollment formula; however, the…

The most terrible and lasting effects of the coronavirus pandemic will of course be measured in loss of life. But a parallel tragedy will also be unfolding in the coming months and years, this one affecting those at the beginning of their lives: an unprecedented school funding crisis that threatens to disadvantage a generation of children. School…

On July 1, 2013, Gov. Jerry Brown signed California's landmark Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF) into law. In addition to providing districts with greater control over how to spend funds, LCFF marked a tremendous opportunity for educational equity. The new funding law gave districts additional resources, called supplemental and concentration…

Each year, funds from federal, state, and local sources are directed to provide special education and related services to nearly 725,000 students with disabilities in California. To increase equitable outcomes for these students, who comprise nearly 12 percent of California's K-12 population, state-decision-makers agree that more research and…

In 2017, the California Department of Education (CDE) announced the "Small School District Assistance Initiative," aimed at providing targeted assistance to small and rural school districts in the state. A prime focus of the initiative is assisting small and rural school districts with improving their facilities. To aid CDE's efforts,…

This study investigates the school facility challenges and issues facing rural and small school districts in California. A mixed method approach was utilized (analysis of district characteristics, spending patterns, and 40 interviews with superintendents) to understand the capital investment patterns and facility planning processes of these…

More than 725,000, nearly 12 percent, of California's public school students receive special education and related services. Although more than half of those students spend 80 percent or more of the school day in a general education classroom, California's special education funding system may not be as inclusive as California's classrooms. This…

Our fixed-effects panel data analysis of state spending on higher education fills a near void of studies examining capital expenditures on higher education. In our study, we found that political characteristics (e.g., interest group activity, organizational structure, and formal powers) largely account for differences between general fund and…

The purpose of this article was to present the results of a study that analyzed Pennsylvania local school boards' taxing authority, pre- and post-enactment of Special Session Act 1, "The Taxpayer Relief Act," in 2006, in terms of its percent share of school districts' total budget in order to better understand the impact of the new…

In this article, we explore how partisanship affects state higher education policy priorities and expenditures. We assume that party coalitions are heterogeneous and policy preferences/priorities differ via mediating factors. We find that Democratic Party strength positively affects state funding for higher education but that the effect diminishes…

By late 2008, the United States was in the midst of its most severe economic recession since the 1930s, brought on by a collapse in real estate prices and exacerbated by the failure of many large banks and financial institutions. Heeding calls from economists, Congress and the Obama administration passed a historic law in early 2009 to stimulate…

By late 2008, the United States was in the midst of its most severe economic recession since the 1930s, brought on by a collapse in real estate prices and exacerbated by the failure of many large banks and financial institutions. Heeding calls from economists, Congress and the Obama administration passed a historic law in early 2009 to stimulate…

There are very real barriers to using people, time, money, and technology well in today's public schools systems. To begin to break down these barriers, the Education Resource Strategies (ERS) has created a framework to prioritize seven urgent restructuring priorities. The authors have found that these areas represent the largest opportunities for…