College and university fund raising must be need-driven rather than donor-driven, capable of providing operating budget relief, and integrated with the institution's vision. Priority needs must be developed into a concise list of gift opportunities that, when funded, will clearly advance the institutional plan. Need-driven investments, not…

Using national data from various sources, this study investigates the influence of financial aspects of state higher education policy on college completion. It found that college completion is positively associated with total state grants as a percentage of appropriations of state tax funds for operating expenses of higher education and state…

In the Fall of 2006, Education Resource Strategies (ERS), a nation-wide leader in helping school systems make the most of their resources, was invited by Saint Paul Public Schools (SPPS) to study the use of resources in the district and create priority recommendations to inform the district's strategic plan. Saint Paul is in a situation where…

This report presents results from Phase 1 of the British Columbia Library Network (BCLN) Project, which included the installation and evaluation of a comprehensive library cataloging system using the University of Victoria Computing Center IBM 4341 computer. Evaluation included actual use of the system, performance and cost studies, feature and…

This report focuses on the business operations of 24 charter schools in Massachusetts. The legislation authorizing the establishment of public charter-school in Massachusetts stipulated that a study of these schools' operations, practices, and activities must be conducted. The information gathered in the review came from the Massachusetts…

Matched Illinois school districts, with and without teacher collective bargaining, were compared on expenditures in 13 budget categories to determine if collective bargaining is related to decreased nonteacher program expenditures. Results suggested that bargaining has led to significantly higher expenditures in both teacher salaries and other…

Due to increasing costs for bus service, the Millard School District in Nebraska has instituted a successful plan whereby students pay partially for bus service by purchasing coupon books. While elementary students more than one mile away are still bused at district expense, junior high students more than two miles away must pay the partial cost…

This report discusses the use of funds provided by the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act in California, Florida, Idaho, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Texas. Objectives of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act are discussed and requirements for states to receive formula grants are reviewed. Observations from project…

This report is one of nine detailed case studies of small urban high schools that served as the foundation for the Education Resource Strategies (ERS) report "Strategic Designs: Lessons from Leading Edge Small Urban High Schools." These nine schools were dubbed "Leading Edge Schools" because they stand apart from other high…

A profile of the economy and efficiency of the White Plains City School District is offered in this report. Specifically, a financial audit was conducted to answer the following question: Has the district acquired, protected, and used its resources economically and efficiently? Selected district practices were audited by the New York Office of the…

This report presents results of a study of college tuition increases and what schools are doing to keep down costs. The study data included the years 1989-90 through 1995-96 and included community colleges and four-year public and private colleges and universities. The study involved use of multiple regression techniques, interviews with school…

A study was conducted to determine if the centralization of playback machine operations for the national free library program would be feasible, economical, and desirable. An alternative model of playback machine services was constructed and compared with existing network operations considering both cost and service. The alternative model was…

A review of Oklahoma State higher education institutions' awarding of academic credit for physical education (PE) courses and the state funding of such courses evaluated current practice and policy and made recommendations for change. The review examined the use of such courses as they relate to graduation requirements, national standards for…

The flow of capital to and through the Guaranteed Student Loan (GSL) Program and the cost of that capital to the federal government and the individual borrower were studied. A review of the research on student loan capital was conducted, and automated cost models were developed to test assumptions and project future costs. Attention was directed…

A study of six paired schools in Prince William County, Virginia, involving schools at the elementary, middle, and high school levels operating on traditional and on year-round plans, revealed that given established attendance boundaries the schools were not operating at sufficient capacity to reduce costs through year-round operation. This report…