In this brief, we examine an important but obscure form of state spending on K-12 education-state subsidies of school district pension costs. In 2018, this exceeded $19 billion across 23 states. To put that amount into perspective, 2018 federal spending on Title I programs was $15.8 billion. This revenue stream is often ignored in analyses of…

How are California districts handling deepening teacher shortages 18 months into the COVID-19 pandemic? Following up on a March 2021 study, "California Teachers and COVID-19: How the Pandemic Is Impacting the Teacher Workforce" (ED614374), this report describes the severe shortages many districts are experiencing and the strategies some…

The California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS) is in the midst of phasing in substantial increases in the contributions made by teachers, school districts, and the state of California. The phase-in period began in 2014-15. In the year prior, 2013-14, the total statutory contribution rate to CalSTRS from all parties was 18.3 percent of…

Public school districts are facing twin challenges: maintaining a labor supply of qualified teachers while shoring up the deteriorating system that compensates them. Keeping public-school teachers' pensions plans flush is expensive, and it accounts for a growing share of education spending. In some states, public charter schools provide an…

Districts across the country are facing severe shortages of teachers--especially in certain subjects (math, science, special education, career and technical education, and bilingual education) and in specific schools (urban, rural, high-poverty, high-minority, and low-achieving). The severity of the teacher shortage problem varies significantly by…

This study examines retirement patterns of California educators from 1995/96 to 2009/10. It finds that the percentage of educators over age 60 doubled, educators were more likely to retire when a school district's local revenue decreased, and the percentage of retired educators returning to work increased. Study findings revealed that: (1) The age…

This study examines retirement patterns of California educators from 1995/96 to 2009/10. It finds that the percentage of educators over age 60 doubled, educators were more likely to retire when a school district's local revenue decreased, and the percentage of retired educators returning to work increased. Study findings revealed that: (1) The age…

Concerns over fiscal and personal appropriateness for public retirement pensions have become prevalent within conversations throughout the United States. However, with some important exceptions (e.g., DeArmond and Goldhaber, 2010) limited research has focused upon perceptions of teachers who receive these pension plans. As such, the purpose of…

As districts face another year of budget gaps, hundreds of thousands of teachers have been warned that, come the end of the school year, their jobs may be gone. In a policy now termed "LIFO" or "last in, first out," most districts make layoff decisions based on seniority and not on job performance or effectiveness. Using…

The purpose of this publication is to focus attention upon a rapidly growing development in public school administration--the increasing interest in personnel administration as a process which can be identified through a description of certain formal functions which every school district must perform. The existence of adequate personnel policies…