This study examines Pilot Schools, which were created via a partnership among Boston's mayor, school committee, superintendent, and teachers union, to promote increased choice options within the school district. The initiative provides models of educational excellence to help foster widespread educational reform in all Boston public schools. Each…

University libraries, and specifically the University of South Florida (USF) Library, are used for many different purposes that go beyond traditional library services. Activities users engage in while in the library should factor into decisions regarding the allocation of library space or expenditure of resources. The results of this survey…

This report presents an update on what has happened in college athletics since three previous reports published in the early 1990s. It was developed following a series of meetings with a broad range of sports representatives and higher education leaders. The report examines progress made by the NCAA toward a proposed "one-plus-three"…

This report describes 8-year projections of state and local government fiscal gaps and surpluses, suggesting that even if state and local governments close their current budget gaps with entirely recurring actions, most states will face continuing difficulty financing current services with existing revenue structures and will not have resources…

These statistics were compiled from information supplied by Arizona's public libraries. The document is divided according to the following county groups: Apache, Cochise; Coconino, Gila; Graham, Greenlee, La Paz; Maricopa; Mohave, Navajo; Pima, Pinal; Santa Cruz, Yavapai; and Yuma. Statistics are presented on the following: general information;…

This paper focuses on the funding of court-ordered desegregation plans in St. Louis and Kansas City and the ongoing search for fiscal equity. After sketching the landmark dates in desegregating the state's two largest cities, the article explores Missouri's continuing quest for fiscal equity in education. It describes the amount of federal aid…

This article analyzes education and finance in Texas. It reports that Texas spends less per pupil on education than many other states in the nation--despite a greater than 10 percent increase in state appropriations for education since 1996. There is also high variance in per-pupil expenditures from one district to the next, with some school…

California's public school system lacks the capacity to deliver on today's higher standards and expectations for all its students. Educators and policymakers believe that greater capacity will require additional funding. The more complex question, however, is, "How much funding would be adequate for California public schools?" This…

School spending decisions are made locally in California, mostly by the leaders in each school district. In making these decisions, local districts have to comply with the provisions of local collective bargaining contracts with employee unions and with state and federal regulations regarding how some money must be spent. An analysis of school…

This paper summarizes the main provisions of Kansas' School District Finance and Quality Performance Act (SDFQP). The paper discusses state financial aid and how this is affected by decreasing enrollment, program weight, low-enrollment weight, correlation weight, transportation weight, at-risk pupil weight, school-facilities weight, and ancillary…

This paper examines the growth of general-fund balances in Michigan's public schools. It discusses the extent of the unspent dollars, describes the characteristics of school districts that choose not to spend, and details what is sacrificed in districts that choose not to spend their entire budget. Financial data for the research were collected…

This report discusses the possibility of expanding the resource and finance data to be collected as part of the 1999-2000 Schools and Staffing Survey (SASS) of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). The proposal under consideration, which is being field tested in the fall of 1998 and winter of 1999, has two major components. The…

This report provides a detailed overview of research activity at the three research institutions of the University and Community College System of Nevada: Desert Research Institute (DRI); the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV); and the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR). It is based on survey data provided by the three institutions for fiscal…

This paper focuses on the funding of court-ordered desegregation plans in St. Louis and Kansas City and the ongoing search for fiscal equity in Missouri's 522 school districts. It describes how school-funding policy issues in the two cities have dominated legislative discussion in Missouri and lists the landmark dates in desegregating the state's…

This collection of papers is the result of a project by the Institute for Higher Education Policy designed to explore the public policy aspects of higher education cost measurement (expenditure analysis). Papers come from a 1-day seminar in 1999 that brought together individuals knowledgeable about cost measurement with institutional leaders and…