Alaska's public schools cost $1.2 billion in the 1992-93 school year. That included both operating and capital spending and amounted to about $10,000 for each of the state's 119,000 elementary and secondary students. Roughly one-quarter of the state government's general fund budget went to the schools, covering 64 percent of costs. About 30…

After summarizing the philosophy behind the financing of public schools, this document reviews the division of legal responsibility for education between the state and federal governments; outlines the state's responsibility for providing an equal educational opportunity for its residents; and summarizes the use of federal revenues, state…

This study analyzes the patterns of 40 teacher strikes between 1955 and 1965 by looking at (1) the issues and demands and (2) the outcomes and settlements. It is hypothesized that (1) teacher strikes fall into discernible patterns, (2) functional relationships exist between certain strike issues and outcomes and the strike itself, (3) strikes can…

The financial plan presented in this paper removes some of the current inequities of the property tax through the following basic features: a per pupil expenditure lid up to which the State provides aid; an equalized assessment rate which is enforced; State aid distributed on the basis of the wealth of the district in comparison to the wealth of…

This document contains statements by educators, religious groups, government officials, constitutional experts, and concerned citizens and groups on various legislative proposals to provide aid to elementary and secondary education. The proposals would (1) provide payments to the States for elementary and secondary education, (2) redress…

If blacks are to have any hope of success in producing favorable social and political change, they must be extremely wary of having too narrow a focus. Blacks cannot waste time in the search for ideological purity, closing out those who happen not to agree on every detail of a specific program. Blacks, together with the other oppressed groups of…

The tables in this compilation provide information about Wisconsin's 426 public school districts, their 2,063 schools, and 988 private schools in the state. In 1996-97, Wisconsin public schools served more than 879,000 students and private schools enrolled just over 150,000. Data are presented in a series of tables grouped into the following…

Statement 34 is the most significant change in the history of governmental accounting. It is a dramatic change in the way school districts report and present financial information. This new reporting model affects every public-school organization that issues financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).…

This paper describes current school-funding policy issues in Washington State. The first part examines how Initiative 601, an initiative aimed at curbing state taxes and spending, will create fiscal instability for school districts. Difficulties include an expected growth in school enrollment exceeding population growth, an expected growth of…

After being placed on the back burner during the 1980s, school finance is again a major issue. In the 1970s, reliance on property taxes created school district disparities because of unequal tax bases. Legislative reforms enacted between 1971 and 1985 had the following characteristics: school finance formulas were revamped; the state role in…

The shifting political milieu which surrounded and conditioned all of Illinois' educational endeavors in the half century after 1870 is discussed. Studies of those elements of society which have influenced the development of schools have often neglected the political milieu that affects educational policy-making at the state level. The political…

Seventeen research studies, position statements, and statistical compilations published between 1966 and 1969 are reviewed. These documents deal with such issues as (1) the effects of financial effort and property assessment practice on educational quality, (2) the role of State aid in equalizing financial resources, (3) the crisis in financing…

Testimony recorded in these hearings was presented by: Dr. Mark Shedd, Superintendent of Schools, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Dr. Robert Blanchard, Superintendent of Schools, Portland Public Schools, Portland Oregon; Joel Berke, Director, Educational Finance and Governance Program, Policy Institute of the Syracuse University Research Corp.; James…

This 756-entry bibliography was prompted by the Serrano decision of the California Supreme Court in August 1971. The items are drawn from the literature on public administration, law, education, and State and local government since 1965. Items are organized under "Inequality of Educational Opportunity,""Financing of Local Public…

This report examines factors that contribute to the differences in local education funding, per pupil revenue, and local resident ability to support present and future educational services in West Virginia. Based on a variety of data generated during 1989-92, the study indicates: (1) the differences in support for local education are attributed to…