A survey of 498 firms that applied for Michigan Job Opportunity Bank-Upgrade grants received 157 responses, including 66 grant recipients. Data showed receipt of grants associated with large, significant (though one-time) increase in training hours and lasting reduction in product scrap rates. (SK)

College officials attribute current low state support for higher education to a worsening national economy, and predict continued cost cutting and increased tension between public and private sectors. Trends also appear to be regional. Detailed data on state appropriations, including a ranking, are included. (MSE)

Examines how an Illinois school district used teamwork and planning to acquire state funding for construction and renovation of two high schools. Planning efforts included conducting a community-based strategic planning, researching the funding program, working closely with state organizations for acquiring grant funds, educating the community,…

Describes how, as states tighten their fiscal belts in the face of a worsening economy, public colleges are substantially raising tuition or facing budget uncertainty. Includes a table of schools raising tuition by at least 10 percent for 2000-2001. (EV)

Discusses findings from a survey of state expenditures on higher education conducted by the Center for the Study of Education Policy at Illinois State University. Overall, spending rose by 7 percent, the third year of such an increase. When considering inflation, however, there are indications that expenditures are beginning to plateau or even…

The tight budgets that many governors have recently proposed have public colleges in a growing number of states convinced that lean times have returned. The situation is particularly dire in certain southern states. In many states, higher education budgets are taking a back seat to public schools. In some states, lack of state funding is forcing…

Examines the effectiveness of new funding formula included in major education reform legislation passed by the Tennessee legislature in early 1990s. Finds unanticipated outcomes. For example, while the variance in per-pupil spending among districts is smaller than before the legislation, the gap between the per-pupil spending of one-third of the…

Describes how spending on higher education grew by 4.6 percent in 2001-02, the smallest increase in 5 years. Includes numerous data tables on state appropriations for higher education. (EV)

On December 11, 2003, the Reading, Pennsylvania, School District, on behalf of "their students and their schools," filed a "Petition for Review" with the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania. In filing this petition, Reading became the first school district in the nation to sue a state education department over the No Child Left…

Recent national budget shortfalls in the United States have caused many states to evaluate various ways to cut their budgets--including cutting education expenditures--while community college enrollments have continued to explode. The combination of these 2 factors threatens the traditional open door policy of public community colleges.

Pennsylvania public libraries began receiving increased allotments of state aid in 2000. In the first two years of enhancement aid, total state aid received by Pennsylvania libraries more than doubled. This reversed the trend of little growth in the years preceding 2000. The enhancement aid program also redesigned certain categories of state aid…

The Quality Education Investment Act (QEIA) is California's latest K-12 intervention program to support low-performing schools. The state will allocate close to $2.7 billion through this seven-year program to help these schools meet performance and resource benchmarks. This two-page brief explains the selection and funding processes, details the…

Undocumented immigrant students in California are eligible to receive only private scholarships that "[aren't] enough to support a very expensive education," says CCLC CEO Scott Lay. Dr. Gerardo E. de los Santos, CEO of the League for Innovation in the Community College, calls "serving the undocumented" one of the major…

The passage of the Kentucky Educational Reform Act (KERA) in 1990 had a dramatic impact on the funding of primary and secondary education in the state. The amount of money spent on education increased significantly with the passage of KERA with districts in rural areas of the state experiencing the largest growth in spending (Hoyt, 1999). This has…

Throughout the end of the 1990s and the early years of the current decade, states experienced severe downturns in their economies. As has happened during other recessions, higher education, often viewed as discretionary spending compared to other budget demands, was hit particularly hard. During these years of severe fiscal constraints, however, a…