The decision in the 1989 landmark Kentucky case, "Rose v. Council for Better Education," initiated many reforms to ensure that children have access to an adequate education, including funding new construction and renovations for school facilities. The purpose of this instrumental, qualitative case study is to describe how the additional…

The nation's major city public school districts have substantial construction, renovation, modernization, and deferred maintenance needs because of the age and size of their school buildings, shifting populations, and the need to devote substantial resources to instructional personnel to meet their core academic mission. For instance, the average…

While there is an extensive literature analyzing the relative equity of state funding systems for current operating revenues, there is a dearth of research on capital funding systems. This article presents an analysis of the school capital funding system in Kentucky since 1990, using the operating-revenue analysis concepts of horizontal equity,…

When Fayette County (Kentucky) school officials began putting together estimates for upcoming renovation projects at two elementary schools, they based their projections on their district construction projects from 2007. But by February, when construction bids were opened for the renovations of Cassidy and Russell Cave elementary schools, the…

When President Obama first signed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), he took much criticism for spending more money--$787 billion more--when the nation was reeling from decades-old debt, a more than 9 percent unemployment rate and a mortgage crisis. But this measure has allowed public school district leaders to invest in…