The goal of "The 123s" is to present the increasingly large body of private school choice research in a clear and easy-to-read format and cite the relevant studies so that anyone who is interested in the individual results can easily find them and read in more detail. This report is divided into 11 sections. First it summarizes the…

This dissertation studies opportunity and equity in college admissions, as well as how higher education affects labor market outcomes. The first two chapters explore how state policies affect enrollment at public institutions of higher education. The third chapter characterizes outcomes in a labor market in which agents with different skill levels…

The formula used to allocate federal funding to states for special education is one of IDEA's most critical components. The formula serves as the primary mechanism for dividing available federal dollars among states and represents policy makers' intent to equalize educational opportunities for students with disabilities nationwide. In this study,…

U.S. rural community colleges serve approximately 3.4 million students, yet there is very little research on these institutions. We conducted a mulitple case study to develop a typology of rural community college locations. We gathered and analyzed publicly available data (n = 25) and private institutional data (n = 6) and conducted in-person…

Purpose: New policy proposals to increase funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)--including recent efforts by the Biden-Harris administration to "fully fund" IDEA--bring a new sense of urgency to understanding how federal special education dollars are distributed among states. In this study, we evaluate…

We exploit differences in state special education funding systems based on special education enrollment ('bounty systems') or on total student enrollment ('census systems') to assess whether funding systems impact teacher turnover, teacher specialty, special education enrollment, state education spending, average class sizes, and teacher effort.…

"Investing in Illinois' Students: An Analysis of Evidence-Based Funding and the Path to Equity, Student Success, and Long-Term COVID-19 Recovery" shares new analyses on the impact of EBF on K-12 education resource equity and remaining gaps between current funding levels and full, adequate funding. The data are striking and underscore the…

Equity is an important feature of state education finance formulas. This article examines one aspect of equity, the equalization of purchasing power that is associated with geographic location. We applied two methods to the 2013-2014 Minnesota school finance system to equalize the purchasing power of districts for that year. The level of imparity…

Across the United States, students attending rural school districts can face different obstacles than their urban counterparts, particularly rural students from households living below the federal poverty level. But how rural districts are defined can vary by federal, state, and local entity and can sometimes not capture the difficulties specific…

In 1965, Congress established Title I, Part A (herein referred to as Title I) as a part of the landmark Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). Congress noted two issues that it hoped to address through Title I funding: schools needed additional financial assistance to provide services to children in low-income families, and school…

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which the foundation program was an adequate and equitable funding mechanism for public schools in the state of Alabama. This study analyzed funding and academic data and evaluated adequacy and equity through the lenses of poverty, geographic location, local tax effort, and type of school…

Michigan has a problem. By several measures, the achievement of students attending its K-12 educational system has not kept pace with other states. Although Michigan's student achievement has improved over the past decade, the improvement has been modest, and achievement in many other states has easily surpassed that in Michigan. Furthermore,…

States are increasingly funding higher education institutions based on their performance or outcomes instead of relying solely on student enrollment to determine funding formulas. Performance Funding (also called Performance-Based and Outcomes-Based Funding) policies provide state support to public colleges and universities based on outcome…

The percentage of public school students qualifying for free or reduced price meals has increased from about 33 percent to nearly 50 percent over the past 15 years. Kansas uses the number of students eligible for free (but not reduced-price) lunch to determine the amount of funding school districts receive to provide for services to at-risk…

The growing numbers of English language learners across the country provide an opportunity for state policymakers and education leaders to invest in and reap the benefits of a well-educated, culturally competent workforce. In this article, the authors review state-level ELL funding for the ten states experiencing the highest ELL population growth…