A survey of one-third of Pennsylvania's school district superintendents and of the firms that conducted the mandated independent audits of their districts provided data revealing variables that accounted for differences in auditing costs among districts, suggesting factors that school business officials might consider when seeking cost reductions.…

In the Fall of 2003, the Pennsylvania Build Initiative convened a Rate Policy Task Force to broadly examine the issue of child care rates and make recommendations for action. The Task Force goal was two-fold: (1) to suggest ways that the rate and payment process currently used by the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare (DPW) can better…

This report examines school funding concerns in Pennsylvania and how they affect Philadelphia schools and, to some extent, the schools of Pittsburgh. The report presents a new way to look at issues of school funding equity and adequacy by trying to link the debates over high standards and the opportunity to meet them by defining adequacy around…

Contends that the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission's mandate helped the Harrisburg City Schools realize their responsibilities in race relations; that after a lengthy quest for a way to achieve racial balance without extensive busing the City schools realized that there was no other way to accomplish the goal. (RJ)

The purpose of an unreserved fund balance is to provide funds for expenditures not included in a district's budget or to make up for revenues anticipated but not received. A model developed to determine the appropriate size of the unreserved fund balance for school districts was tested with simulations in 498 Pennsylvania school districts. (MLF)

A rich body of literature has emerged that seeks to shed further light on how concepts like globalization and internationalization shape higher education systems and their institutions. This paper examines how the rise of private higher education in various national contexts has engendered global patterns of public financial support for private…

In the first decade of the 21st century, the nation, the states, and colleges and universities began to grapple with the challenges of globalization, changing demography, the implications of the digital era, and of a less expansive public sector. Although not a transformative period for higher education, the decade saw significant innovations in…

Pennsylvania state policymakers have taken steps to address issues of educational equity across school districts by amending the school-finance funding system. Pennsylvania relies on local property tax revenues as a major source of funding. This paper examines the effect of the property-tax-base formula on educational expenditures in the state.…

This report provides a compilation of financial statistics concerning colleges and universities in Pennsylvania. The primary source of the data was the annual Finance Survey, part of the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS). Tables and figures present the following data: (1) percentage change of total current-funds revenues and…

Findings of a study that examined the relationship between Pennsylvania teachers' salaries and local wealth are presented in this paper. Statistical analyses of 491 Pennsylvania school districts involved regression, t tests, and chi square. Findings indicate that two factors had a statistically significant impact on local teacher salaries: (1) the…

During 1972-73 the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency had to deal with the problems of both the victims of the 1972 flood in Pennsylvania and the returning veterans. The report covers three state programs. (1) The State Scholarship Program made 105,501 awards at $62,759,544. There were 30,701 recipients who were 1972 high school…

Describes a Pennsylvania county school district's efforts to restore summer school despite budget restrictions and declining enrollments by combining forces with 14 other schools. Five local superintendents developed a plan for a countywide remedial program charging students $60 tuition for each 2-hour course taken. (MLH)

A report of problems and progress of the desegregation plan being implemented in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. (DM)

A description is given of how technology can increase students' performance and allow teachers to be effective with limited finances. (MK)

When the 1991 Pennsylvania Legislature decentralized its special education funding process, it created a crisis for the commonwealth's 29 educational regional service agencies. The Chester County Intermediate Unit responded entrepreneurially by downsizing the department; surveying customer satisfaction levels; instituting staff training programs;…