Presidents and boards deal with great uncertainty all the time. Today, however, many of them also face a troubling certainty: Business as usual is the road to failure. The trend lines of revenue and expense, once aided by marginal income from growing enrollments, once amenable to marginal annual balancing tweaks, and once cushioned by reserves,…

Strategic finance is aligning financial decisions--regarding revenues, creating and maintaining institutional assets, and using those assets--with the institution's mission and strategic plan. The concept known as "strategic finance" increasingly is being seen as a useful perspective for helping boards and presidents develop a sustainable…

State support of public higher education has rapidly declined relative to total state spending. Much of this decline in support is due to the rapid growth in spending on such things as Medicaid. However, relative support of public higher education varies significantly between states. This study applies Tandberg's (2009) fiscal policy framework…

The trends and the trajectory of higher education research expenditure in South Africa since the introduction of the New Funding Formula in 2004 have been analysed. The paper also compares the level of South Africa's total gross expenditure on research and development with those of other selected economies. The findings show that following…

This "Trends in College Spending" update presents national-level estimates for the "Delta Cost Project" data metrics during the period 2001-11. To accelerate the release of more current trend data, however, this update includes only a brief summary of the financial patterns and trends observed during the decade 2001-11, with…

Delaware was in the first group of states to receive a federal grant in 2012 to improve early care and education services and increase the number of infants, toddlers, and preschool-age children in high-quality programs. One component of the state's grant is a rigorous validation process for Delaware Stars for Early Success, a voluntary quality…

Between 2013-14 and 2014-15, average published tuition and fee prices increased by 2.9% for in-state students in the public four-year sector, by 3.3% for out-of-state students in the public four-year sector and for in-district students at public two-year colleges, and by 3.7% at private nonprofit four-year institutions. These increases are higher…

ConnCAN's Spend Smart: "Fix Our Broken School Funding System" was released concurrently with a bill introduced in the Connecticut legislature, based on the principles outlined in the report. However, the report is of negligible value to the policy debate over Connecticut school finance because it provides little or no support for any of…

This paper examines ways governance leaders can increase the number of Americans who finish college and other certificate programs, stressing that such a goal is necessary to ensure that the U.S. economy remains competitive. Based on a December 2010 conference that convened individuals and organizations responsible for higher education, The Miller…

Michigan radically altered its school finance system in 1994. The new plan, called Proposal A, significantly increased state aid to the lowest-spending school districts and limited future increases in spending in the highest-spending ones, abolishing local discretion over school spending. I investigate the impact of Proposal A on the distribution…

Over the past 70 years, all states in the United States began to publicly subsidize kindergarten using state revenue. The variation in adoption dates across states allows for a unique opportunity to measure the effectiveness of the largest early education program implemented in recent history. The significant, immediate increase in the…

It is the worst of times for state budgets. But across the country, some elected officials say it's the best time to rethink how their states spend money on education. Governors and other officeholders are arguing that their states have no choice but to re-examine assumptions about how schools are using the money they currently receive, given…

This quantitative study examined the perceptions of selected university administrators and legislators concerning levels of support for Tennessee public higher education. The purpose of the study was to gain a greater understanding among the various constituents as to the needs and restraints facing higher education funding. The population…

In spring of 2012, the Idaho Charter School Network, the Colorado League of Charter Schools, and the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools worked to collect evidence that would accurately portray both the adequacy of charter school facilities and the average spending for facilities out of charter schools' operating budgets in Idaho.…

Governor Jerry Brown has called for a major overhaul of California's school finance policies. His proposal for a weighted pupil funding system would simplify the rules that govern the distribution of funds to schools and school districts, while targeting a larger share of available resources to the schools and students with the greatest needs. In…