In answering the question posed in the title, the author begins with a story that businessman Jamie Vollmer told to educators a few years ago. In examining business involvement in U.S. school reform, the author looks at the 1890s through 1920s and the 1970s to the present--two points in history when business leaders and educational entrepreneurs,…

The Federal Government provides support for education well beyond programs funded through the Department of Education. Federal support for education, excluding revenues foregone through allowable income tax deductions, was an estimated $87.5 billion in fiscal year (FY) 1993, an increase of $24.1 billion (38%) since FY 1990, representing, after…

Trends during the 1980s are described including high infant mortality, no decline in low birthweight percentages, an increase in the black-white infant mortality gap, more high-risk pregnancies, and inadequate prenatal care. Inadequate progress in reducing infant mortality is attributed in part to the limited technological ability to save…

Prepared by a state educational planning committee, this report uses key indicators to describe the status of the Delaware school system. Sets of comparative data selected from various national studies and from state surveys appear throughout the report. The statistical material is supplemented with descriptions of trends and discussions of the…

A national telephone survey of 1,504 adult Americans was conducted to determine the role that the arts play in their lives. Overall, results show that the arts are an indispensable part of the mainstream of American life. A shortage of leisure time causes people to be selective about their leisure time commitments. Despite this, arts attendance…

Preliminary results of two surveys of parents, students, and teachers in Catholic elementary schools in British Columbia indicate that public funding for private schools could cause deterioration in the schools' social climates. Data were collected both before and after British Columbia instituted its program of public aid to private schools in…

This document describes the legislative history, development, and current status of the University of Kentucky Community College System. Legislated in 1962, the 13-college system enrolled 17,196 credit students in 1976 compared to 1,907 in 1967. Transfer students accounted for 37.4% of enrollment, Applied Science degree students accounted for…

As part of a series of reports designed to support the implementation of Proposition 10: The California Children and Families Act and to provide comprehensive and authoritative information on critical issues concerning young children and families in California, this report focuses on the role of public education and outreach and provides…

This book examines the condition of America's poor and the policies used to help them, demonstrating that government aid has been far more effective in reducing poverty than most people think. One of the primary points of the book is that poverty is not synonymous with single mothers and their children on welfare; in fact, the majority of the poor…

This report presents the findings of a commission established by the Missouri State Coordinating Board of Higher Education in response to concerns posed by the rising cost of undergraduate attendance at institutions of higher education. The commission's charge was to review pertinent data and make recommendations to the higher education community…

This essay reports on a roundtable of higher education leaders, association heads, government officials, and public policy experts that examined the changes in policymakers' attitudes toward federally sponsored research. Since World War II national science policy has made universities the principal locus of basic research in the United States. But…

Uses the rapid rise and fall (within two years) of Clinton's industrial technology policy as an example of the creation and delegitimization of political ideas in federal government. Compares the shifting opinions on this policy to similar experiences with other policies, most notably nuclear power. (MJP)

Presents a simple diagrammatic technique for conveying the idea of Ricardian equivalence or policy neutrality in the provision of public goods. Includes several diagrams illustrating basic positions regarding the relationship between voluntary public contributions and taxation. Provides a brief explanation of the illustrated concepts. (MJP)

This technical assistance guide contains information on sources to fund a comprehensive literacy component in an employment and training program. The section on public funding addresses federal and state funding, funding processes, and strictures on public funding. A section on private funding focuses on the two largest sources--foundations and…

The Post-Secondary Enrollment Options Act, enacted by the Minnesota State Legislature in 1985, allows 11th- and 12th-grade high school students to take courses, for credit, in colleges, junior colleges, and vocational-technical institutes despite opposition from high school authorities. Students may use credits from these courses to count toward…