Is public education equitable and does it provide an equal opportunity to all children and youths? Equity in public school funding is a critical issue facing all communities and has been addressed by the courts in all but five states. A key focus is on funding gaps between rich and poor school districts. Recently, attention has turned to the relationship between funding gaps and the opportunity gaps that have real and important impacts on student outcomes. This research provides a comprehensive analysis of equity in a western state of the U.S.A. Fifteen quantitative statistics, weighted for high-cost students, sparsity, district population, and the cost of education, are calculated and discussed. It was found that there are large opportunity gaps among school districts and they are linked to local wealth. This makes the quality of education a function of local wealth that abridges equal opportunities to learn and to be successful, for children and youth in schools and classrooms. Implications for closing the opportunity gap are discussed in the final section.

What is an adequate education and how much does it cost? In 1989, Kentucky’s State Supreme Court found the entire system of education unconstitutional-“all of its parts and parcels”. The Court called for all children to have access to an adequate education, one that is uniform and has as its goal the development of seven capacities, including: (i) “sufficient oral and written communication skills to enable students to function in a complex and rapidly changing civilization . . . .and (vii) sufficient levels of academic or vocational skills to enable public school students to compete favorably with their counterparts in surrounding states, in academics or in the job market”. Now, over a decade later, key questions remain regarding whether these objectives have been fulfilled. This research is designed to calculate the cost of an adequate education by aligning resources to State standards, laws and objectives, using a professional judgment approach. Seven focus groups were convened for this purpose and the scholarly literature was reviewed to provide multiple inputs into study findings. The study produced a per pupil base cost for each of three prototype school districts and an total statewide cost, with the funding gap between existing revenue and the revenue needed for current operations of $1.097 billion per year (2001-02). Additional key resource requirements needed to achieve an adequate education, identified by professional judgment panels, include: (1) extending the school year for students and teachers, (2) adding voluntary half-day preschool for three and four year olds, and (3) raising teacher salaries. This increases the funding gap to $1.23 billion and suggests that significant new funding is required over time if the Commonwealth of Kentucky is to provide an adequate and equitable education of high quality for all children and youth as directed by the State Supreme Court.

This research investigates state finance policies for public education using survey methodology. The purpose is to update previous work and the existing knowledge base in the field as well as to provide a compendium of finance and policy options that are used across the states to finance public elementary and secondary schools. Chief state school officers or their designee were queried; data were provided for all 50 states and posted on the web for verification. This article presents the findings together with crosscutting themes including major state apportionment policies for K-12, special student populations, capital outlay provisions and transportation funding. Keywords: finance; policy; schools; K-12; special populations; low income; special education; English learners; capital outlay. Sistemas de financiamiento de la educación pública en los Estados Unidos y políticas de financiamiento para poblaciones con necesidades educativas especialesResumen: Este proyecto investiga las finanzas estatales para la educación pública usando una encuesta de opinión. El objetivo es actualizar estudios previos y presentar el estado actual sobre el campo, así como proveer un compendio de las opciones financieras y políticas que se utilizan en los epaa aape Education Policy Analysis Archives Vol. 19 No. 21 2 distintos estados para financiar escuelas públicas en los niveles primarios y secundarios. Directores de los sistemas escolares estatales, o sus representantes fueron consultados, los datos fueron proporcionados por los 50 estados y se publicarán en sistema en línea para su confirmación. Este artículo presenta los resultados junto con temas relacionados, incluyendo las políticas de distribución de los principales estados de poblaciones de estudiantes con necesidades especiales, las estimaciones de gastos de capital y financiación del transporte del sistema K-12. Palabras clave: finanzas; política; escuelas K-12; poblaciones con necesidades educativas especiales; bajos ingresos; estudiantes de inglés; gastos de capital.Sistemas de financiamento da educação pública nos Estados Unidos e políticas de financiamento para populações com necessidade educativas especiais Abstract: A presente pesquisa investiga as políticas estatais de finanças para a educação pública utilizando a metodologia da pesquisa de opinião. O objetivo é atualizar estudos anteriores e a base de conhecimento existente no campo, bem como fornecer um compêndio de possibilidades de finanças e políticas que são utilizadas nos diferentes estados para financiar as escolas públicas de ensino fundamental e médio. Os diretores das escolas do estado, ou seus representantes, foram consultados; os dados foram fornecidos por todos os 50 estados e postados no sistema online para confirmação. Este artigo apresenta os resultados juntamente com os temas transversais, incluindo políticas de distribuição dos principais estados para o K-12; populações de estudantes especiais, previsões de despesas de capital e financiamento de transporte. Palavras-Chave: finanças; ...

This study investigated the perceptions of federal, state, and local program administrators related to increasing regulatory flexibility. Open-ended interviews were conducted with 58 individuals representing 8 states, 11 local school districts, the U.S. Department of Education, and selected national organizations. Individuals were asked to respond to a number of questions regarding how their state or local district is attempting to increase flexibility in implementing the Indiviual with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Title I of the Improving America's Schools Act (IASA), and bilingual education and to identify barriers to increasing the consolidation of resources across these programs. Strategies for consolidating programs and services were also identified. Interviewees generally perceived a number of benefits in consolidation, including more efficient use of resources, enhanced collaboration, and more inclusive education. They also identified a number of policy and organizational barriers including fear of audits, lack of leadership, and lack of personnel training or support. Challenges included the dilution of services, lack of targeting, and loss of special protections to special populations.

No abstract