The Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (AEFLA), Title II of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-220) requires states to document whether or not adult education service providers are improving the quality of their instructional services. To reward effective providers, a number of states have adopted performance-based funding (PBF)…

Since its introduction in 2001, the Australian (Commonwealth) Government's socio-economic status (SES)-based funding scheme for private schools has been criticised as inequitable. The author argues that the inequities of the scheme are the result of government policy rather than the SES-based model itself. Compared with the former education…

The theory-based evaluation approach documents the assumptions implicit in program design and points to the data required to test these assumptions. Collecting and analyzing such data through quantitative and qualitative techniques enhances understanding of the validity of the assumptions and the relevance of key program processes. This article…

The Department of Defense (DoD) is committed to meeting the need for child care among military families. DoD supports the largest employer-sponsored system of high-quality child care in the country. Through accredited child development centers (CDCs), family child care (FCC) homes, youth centers, and other after-school programs, DoD currently…

Most states have experimented with performance accountability as a way to drive improvement in public higher education institutions and systems. However, efforts to implement performance funding in the United States have yielded mixed results. This policy brief describes the reforms that dramatically changed the policy landscape in England and…

The Maryland Higher Education Commission, with the assistance of a Task Force on Continuing Education, produced this 2001 manual. The manual describes the regulations, policies, and procedures pertaining to the approval for State funding of continuing education courses offered by community colleges. Continuing education in the State of Maryland…

This report presents an overview of the revised preschool funding formula under the 1997 amendments of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and perceptions of some state education agencies (SEA) staff on the initial impact of the funding changes. New features include a hold harmless base amount that is equal to the preschool grant…

This paper presents the public higher education system trends in Connecticut for 2008. This report contains the following sections: (1) FY 2007-2009 Operating Budget Summary; (2) Higher Education in a Statewide Context; (3) General Fund and Operating Budget Expenditure Trends; (4) Comparative Funding Indicators; (5) Enrollment Trends; (6) Degrees…

The Legislature requested a study of the student-faculty ratio workload measure used by the University of California (UC) to determine if it results in excess instructional resources for the University. Following a statement of the purpose of the report, information on the background of the University's instructional resources formula is provided.…

A study was conducted of state funding methods, practices and trends in the states covered by the Southern Regional Education Board. The use of funding formulas was found to be about as prevalent as in the late 1970s. A detailed profile is presented for each of the 15 states studied. The profiles provide such information as: state agency name;…

The potential for reconciling state formula funding of higher education with institutional planning needs is discussed. It is proposed that states invent a financing mechanism that funds a fair share of the strategic aims of each public college and university, yet allows the state to invest in a few priorities. New Jersey's experiment with such an…

Critical analysis of historical financial data of the Calgary Board of Education (CBE) examined the impact of Alberta's 1994 funding changes on the CBE and the distribution of Alberta's education funding. Findings illustrate how funding mechanisms are used to govern from a distance and how seemingly neutral accounting/funding techniques function…

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…

This article introduces the issue of articles on research assessments and rankings. It focuses on the British Research Assessment Exercises (RAEs) and New Zealand's Performance Based Research Fund (PBRF). It contrasts these with systems that are not tied to funding formulas and emphasise quality enhancement rather than quality assurance. It…

This paper reports on the development of a grant support unit in the Community College League of California's (CCLC) Ad Hoc Task Force on Grants and Development. A survey was developed and mailed during December, 1998, and again in January, 1999. In total, 92% of the 71 districts responded to the survey, 89% of the 106 campuses responded, and 100%…