The Foundation Aid Formula is designed to deliver more funding to New York districts with higher enrollments of low-income students who require additional resources to support their education. These higher need districts struggle to raise sufficient local dollars and rely more heavily on state aid to support their schools. As a result, the…

In the 2009 "Abbott v. Burke XX" decision, the New Jersey Supreme Court approved the SFRA formula as a replacement for the previously Court-ordered "parity" and "supplemental funding" remedies for the longstanding violation of the constitutional right to a thorough and efficient education of students in 31 urban, or…

The landscape of K-12 education funding in the United States is exceptionally complex. When it comes to funding an equitable, high-quality education for English Learners (ELs), discussions often focus on federal funds under Title III of the "Every Student Succeeds Act" (ESSA)--an important source of funding for many aspects of ELs'…

In January 2013, the governor proposed a new funding model for California school districts called the Local Control Funding Formula. As the Legislature debates the proposed new funding model for schools, which is expected to start in the 2013-14 fiscal year, the author thought it would be a good time for a history lesson in California school…

This research briefly summarizes a series of Ohio Supreme Court litigation known as "DeRolph v. State" and then measures the equality of expenditures among Ohio school districts. "DeRolph v. State" was a high-profile school finance adequacy case. Nevertheless, the high court continuously expressed concern for the financial…

Education finance policy in New Jersey has been shaped by over 30 years of school finance litigation. Through its decisions in "Robinson v. Cahill" (1973-1976) and "Abbott v. Burke" (1985-2005), the justices of New Jersey's supreme court have defined the state's constitutional guarantee of a "thorough and efficient"…

The first of two sections discusses two major factors compelling a rethinking of school finance: standards-based education and the shift from equity to adequacy in school-finance litigation. The second section summarizes five compilations of research findings related to these two factors. (PKP)

The fight over school funding in most states involves a long battle in the courts that may span several years and never have a definitive endpoint because resistance to adequate funding of public schools appears to be endemic to government processes. The "DeRolph" case, first filed by the plaintiffs in December 1991, is one such legal…

In addition to setting high standards for student performance, educational policies must consider what resources are essential to provide an adequate educational program to meet all students' learning needs. Policy makers also want to ensure that educators make efficient use of available resources. In this exploration of school finance policy, we…

Outlines North Carolina Superior Court Judge Howard E. Manning's ruling concerning school funding inequities. Details the ruling's insistence on the submission of progress reports every three months. Proposes that the ruling is too controlling and fails to recommend how to eliminate funding inequities. (PM)