PDF pending restorationERIC Number: ED376587
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1994
Pages: 140
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Minnesota's Open Enrollment Option: Impacts on School Districts.
Funkhouser, Janie E.; Colopy, Kelly W.
This report presents a second look at the effects of Minnesota's School District Enrollment Options Program, usually referred to as the Open Enrollment Program. This interdistrict enrollment program allows families and students to apply for enrollment in any school district other than the one in which they reside. This document focuses on the Minnesota school districts that experienced the greatest amount of student movement as a result of the Open Enrollment Program in 1990-91. It attempts to assess the validity of the supply-and-demand argument that holds that where there is choice, schools and districts will change and/or improve programming to meet consumers' demands. Administrators from a total of 84 districts participated in a telephone survey. These districts were then classified as high-impact gainers, high-impact losers, or low-impact districts. In conclusion, findings were mixed regarding the validity of the supply-and-demand theory of educational choice. Some evidence suggested that open enrollment motivated administrators of districts that lost students to try to improve their school programs; however, other evidence indicated that open enrollment was not the causative factor in program improvement. Further, in some districts where open enrollment should have, in theory, stimulated improvement, it forced actions such as staff layoffs and the cancellation of programs or services. A total of 25 exhibits are included. Appendices contain information on methodology, copies of district surveys, and sample letters to the sampled districts. (LMI)
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Department of Education, Washington, DC. Office of the Under Secretary.
Authoring Institution: Policy Studies Associates, Inc., Washington, DC.
Identifiers - Location: Minnesota
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A


