After decades of decline, Scranton can capitalize on the unprecedented federal emergency relief provided to schools and communities in the pandemic and its wake. To do so, Scranton must recognize and address the threat to the city's public school system. Great public schools are the lifeblood of any thriving community, attracting and retaining…

The challenges associated with educating students with disabilities in charter schools in Connecticut are symptoms of two broader issues--the state's inequitable public education funding system and problematic ambiguity in the state charter law. Connecticut is a state of haves and have nots, and effectively advocating for more equitable funding…

In many districts where budgets are tight and forcing cuts in services, are teacher incomes also falling behind? Is teaching becoming a less remunerative occupation relative to other local opportunities such that over time it may become less attractive? Or, do the automatic salary triggers shift wages up despite revenue constraints? This study…

Resource allocation to school sites in public school districts is inequitable. While Student Based Funding (SBF) has been implemented in several major urban school districts, there are few empirical studies about how SBF policies are derived and implemented. Current efforts to align resources with student need are hindered by a lack of systematic,…

"Ohio Education by the Numbers" offers busy policy makers, journalists, and civic and business leaders simple and easy-to-use vital statistics about Ohio's schools and the students they serve. The facts and figures contained within offer an overview of Ohio's students; where they go to school; their achievement on national and state…

In 2007 Georgia instituted a flexibility policy through which school districts enter into performance contracts with the state, receiving waivers from state rules, provisions, and guidelines in exchange for agreeing to meet annual accountability targets. The performance contracts are intended to incentivize innovations that increase achievement…

These are the appendixes for the report, "District Changes in Student Achievement and Local Practice under Georgia's District and School Flexibility Policy." Five appendixes are included in the document: (1) About the study; (2) Data and methods; (3) Supporting analysis; (4) Survey instrument; and (5) Interview protocol. [For the full…

Alteration of the direct state funding system and transition to a voucher system commenced in 2005. Establishment of a voucher funding system for secondary schools aimed at ensuring more transparency and conscientiousness of allocating the sums for schools, as well as effective expenditure of money. Voucher funding has had to ensure financial…

The goal of this study was to: (1) identify challenges faced by Maine school districts in providing high quality public education; (2) describe the magnitude of the challenges; and (3) identify areas where school districts were experiencing some success in meeting these challenges. The School Districts Challenge Survey was distributed online to…

In November 2010, Baltimore's Fund for Education Excellence and the Annie E. Casey Foundation approached the Center on Reinventing Public Education (CRPE) and requested a case study of the implementation of Baltimore City Public Schools' (City Schools) portfolio strategy. These local foundations were interested in understanding how the district…

Policymakers have long pursued more cost effective, scalable alternatives for delivering elementary and secondary education. The elusive goal is identifying how to reform educational systems so that children will consistently achieve more academically--at a lesser cost. A frequently heard reform claim of this sort is that charter schools deliver…

One of a series of Education Resource Strategies (ERS) publications and tools, this paper explores important ways to organize and invest in Professional Growth & Support that strengthen teaching capacity and effectiveness at the system level. It draws on research, ERS experience with urban school systems nationwide, and detailed analyses of…

While sparse literature exists investigating the impact of the Great Recession on various sectors of the economy, there is virtually no research that studies the effect of the Great Recession, or past recessions, on schools. This paper starts to fill the void. Studying school funding during the recession is of paramount importance because schools…

This research examines the financial profiles of 550 public school districts in Michigan and highlights the association between school district fund balance and the following eleven indicators: enrollment, percent enrollment change, percent of students receive free and reduced lunch (FRL), percent of special education students, percent of English…

The aim of this research is to study the effectiveness of general education funding system from the perspective of equal and equal educational opportunities for all in Georgia. Following the objective, the research aimed to respond three main research questions: 1. is the school financing formula effective and efficient enough to be administrated…