Across the country, millions of students that were expected to enroll in school last Fall did not show up. Public schools are searching for these "missing students" and working to get them back to school, either virtually or brick and mortar. The enrollment drop stands to impact more than just the missing students. Education funding…

In this article, I report findings from an investigation into the politics and coordination of school fundraising in the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Theoretically grounded in institutional ethnography and critical policy analysis, the study began from the standpoint of parents asked to give money to their…

The pandemic hit the already vulnerable early childhood education (ECE) workforce especially hard, causing almost 40 percent of child care providers to shut their doors and many teachers to lose their jobs. In 2021, enrollment in state-funded preschool also dropped for the first time in 20 years--a nearly 20 percent decline that erased a decade of…

This case positions the reader as the superintendent of Daly City Community Schools (DCCS), a mid-sized public school district located in the Midwestern United States facing a fiscal crisis. The case requires the reader to propose fiscal alternatives to a school board. For example, the case might invite the reader to consider the appointment of an…

Tens of thousands of individuals across the United States volunteer their time, energy, and expertise as members of charter school boards. Yet as the charter sector has grown, remarkably little has been learned about these individuals who make key operational decisions about their schools and have legal and moral responsibilities for the education…

In keeping with the provisions of Tennessee Code Annotated 49-1-201(12), this Annual Statistical and Financial Report for the scholastic year ending June 30, 2015, provides a numerical record of information describing the condition of education in the state of Tennessee. The report provides the following information: (1) Public School Officers;…

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) 2009 funds were established by the Obama administration to stabilize the U.S. economy and support public education. This case examines how the district leadership in one rural unified school district in California decided to allocate the State Fiscal Stabilization Funds and Title I Part A/ARRA…

This twelfth edition of "Measuring up to the Model: A Ranking of State Charter School Laws" evaluates each state's public charter school law against the 21 essential components of a strong charter school law. These 21 components are drawn from the National Alliance's "A New Model Law for Supporting the Growth of High-Quality Public…

In keeping with the provisions of Tennessee Code Annotated 49-1-201(12), this Annual Statistical and Financial Report for the scholastic year ending June 30, 2014, provides a numerical record of information describing the condition of education in the state of Tennessee. The report provides the following information: (1) Public School Officers;…

Charter schools' autonomy and flexibility provides them with the opportunity to find ways to close the performance gap between students with and without disabilities, but deep-seated, systemic challenges often cause individual charters to struggle to do so on their own. For cities with an established charter sector, a city-wide, collaborative…

Are the nation's 90,000-plus school board members critical players in enhancing student learning? Are they part of the problem? Are they harmless bystanders? Among the takeaways are the following: (1) Board members, by and large, possess accurate information about their districts when it comes to finance, teacher pay, collective bargaining, and…

The Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), signed into law by Governor Jerry Brown on July 1, 2013, represents the first comprehensive change in California's education funding system in 40 years. The LCFF eliminates nearly all categorical funding streams, shifts control of most education dollars from the state to local school districts, and…

Today's challenges for special education funding are rooted in a complex regulatory and policy environment that reflects little forethought about who can and will pay special education costs. Despite the fact that states and school districts are legally required to ensure a free and appropriate public education to students with disabilities, the…

This annual report, The State of Public Education in New Orleans, has been the Institute's flagship publication, capturing as much information as possible about our schools in a single document. This year's report will continue that tradition, but with more of an eye towards the future and what comes next for our schools. The unification of…

School districts use a variety of policies to close budget gaps and stave off teacher layoffs and furloughs. More schools are implementing four-day school weeks to reduce overhead and transportation costs. The four-day week requires substantial schedule changes as schools must increase the length of their school day to meet minimum instructional…