Throughout the end of the 1990s and the early years of the current decade, states experienced severe downturns in their economies. As has happened during other recessions, higher education, often viewed as discretionary spending compared to other budget demands, was hit particularly hard. During these years of severe fiscal constraints, however, a…

When Mark Smith was principal of Houston's Anderson Elementary School in the early 1990s, he often ran up against a maddening mathematics problem. At the time, the Houston Independent School District doled out money to schools for nonteaching staff members--like assistant principals, clerks, and librarians--based on a set of enrollment formulas…

In the "Sydney Morning Herald" of 23 March 2005, Ross Gittins argued that the funding arrangements for private schools positively encourage parents to move their children from the state system. The then Federal Minister for Education, Dr Brendan Nelson, in a letter to the "Herald" of 25-27 March, responded by saying that 68% of…

This paper presents the public higher education system trends in Connecticut for 2009. This report contains the following sections: (1) Higher Education in a Statewide Context; (2) Expenditure Trends; (3) Comparative Funding Indicators; (4) Enrollment Trends; (5) Degrees Conferred; (6) Position Trends; (7) Tuition and Fees; (8) Student and State…

Offers a state-by-state description of funding, facilities, and technology standards related to education and contact information for relevant personnel. (EV)

Community College of Southern Nevada (CCSN) President Richard Carpenter has criticized the state's college funding formula, saying it penalizes southern Nevada students--particularly minorities. Carpenter said he hopes lawmakers will alter a complex equation that leads to a discrepancy in funding between CCSN and other institutions, including…

Changing state revenues have prompted heightened concern about the immediate short- and long-term future and stability of state investments in higher education. The 2007 Survey of the National Council of State Directors of Community Colleges (NCSDCC) is the third administration of questions to determine questions of access, funding and overall…

The Illinois Supreme Court has permitted the General Assembly to create a system of public school funding that is widely disparate and disadvantageous to students in school districts with low-property wealth. In this Article, I argue that the court has not adequately considered the nexus between the Uniformity of Taxation provision and the…

Two proposals in the bill currently circulating to reauthorize No Child Left Behind seem to be shoe-ins for making their way into federal law. The impetus behind both proposals is to help poor kids by making sure that districts spend as much money on them as gets spent on rich kids. Going against the grain, the National Council on Teacher Quality…

Background: Pay is an important human resource function that has attracted considerable interest within the professional literature and this study addresses pay discrimination. Purpose(s): To address pay for a particular protected group unaddressed in existing literature (Hispanic-surnamed principals). Setting: The setting for this study is public…

Presents the mathematical formula devised by George O. Weber on budgeting for physical plants of colleges and universities. Uses four functions of administration, maintenance (operational), housekeeping/custodial, and grounds as a base. (Author/MLF)

For ethical and practical reasons, lottery and its role in funding public education has sparked intense criticism from school leaders and public policy experts. State lottery profits typically comprise 1-5 percent of state's local budget, despite public expectations. Although lottery monies are supposed to supplement education funding, they are…

Discusses the advantages and disadvantages of six types of budgets commonly used by many different kinds of libraries. The budget types covered are lump-sum; formula; line or line-item; program; performance or function; and zero-based. Accompanying figures demonstrate the differences between four of the budget types. (three references) (KRN)

Massachusetts is meeting its constitutional requirement to provide students with an adequate education and does not have to overhaul its school funding formula, the state's highest court ruled in a closely watched case in February 2005. The February 15 decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court surprised many observers, who had expected…

In recent years, policy makers and educators in the U.S. have begun to show considerable interest in the concept of weighted student funding as a means of financing primary and secondary schools. Weighted student funding (WSF) has three main elements. Money follows students on a per student basis to the schools they attend, the per student amount…