In a series of new questions in this year's poll, conducted November 26 to November 30, 2018, Jacksonville community members shared their views on what makes a high quality school. Participants said teachers and parents have a greater impact on school quality than system leaders or community groups; in essence, the closer you are to the student,…

In the past, school and college administrators relied heavily on advice from colleagues, largely because they had an internal orientation toward their work. As the social, political, and economic influence of external forces became more apparent, they learned to value input from a range of stakeholders. Robert Taft, former governor of Ohio, is a…

This article examines the first regional governance reform in public education, created in the Omaha, Nebraska metropolitan area in 2007. The legislation creating this regional reform, which is called the Learning Community, established a regional governing body, the Learning Community Coordinating Council, consisting of an elected 21-member…

Drawing from state administrative data and surveys of superintendents in Ohio, this mixed methods study examined factors associated with voters' approval of local school levies. Utilizing binomial logistic regression, this study found that new levies and poverty rates were significantly associated with a decrease in the likelihood of passage.…

From the glamour and glitz of Hollywood to the technological hub of Silicon Valley, from the majestic Redwoods to the surfers off the Malibu beaches, California is a state of contrasts in many ways, including its politics. The contrasts extend to its public education system, from the renowned University of California system, which employs more…

This is the first in a trilogy of policy briefs discussing public education and taxes. This brief discusses the challenge facing Texas in funding public education. It also explains why the Texas Supreme Court's recent decision in "West Orange-Cove II" requires increased state appropriations for public education.

Posits a generic framework for policy study disciplines based on systems analysis and uniting five dimensions--policymaking processes, policy content, administration, consequences, and context. Reviews relationships between some aspects of economic theory and taxation and applies the framework to tax policy analysis. (MJL)

Presents the results of a survey on school finance taken among education professionals. The questions asked cover such areas as priority of expenditures, revenue sources, adequacy of funding, length of schooling, and State vs local control. (Author/DN)

Taxpayer unhappiness with increasing property taxes have prompted changes to Wisconsin's school finance system. In the midst of providing property-tax relief, the new tax base structure remains intact and allows school districts to exceed their revenue limits with a majority vote in districtwide elections. Debate is ongoing. (MLH)

These volumes update the three previous editions (published for 1976-77, 1978-79, and 1986-87) by describing school finance programs in 1990-91 in the United States and Canada. This effort is descriptive, rather than prescriptive. The volumes consist of two major parts. The first part provides an overview of the school finance systems in the two…

There exists a clearly and amply documented need for an alternative to the property tax as a means of supporting public education, and many fiscal experts have expressed themselves in favor of the municipal income tax as a recourse. This analysis attempts to demonstrate that since additional revenues are needed for local governments and an…

The document clarifies an originally proposed program to provide Statewide funding for public elementary and secondary education in Rhode Island by reviewing, stepwise, the actual operation of the plan for establishing tax levies and determining grant allocations; examines the anticipated effects of this proposed plan on the tax rates in…

Research into voters' reasons for supporting or opposing Proposition 2 1/2, Massachusetts's 1980 property tax limitation measure, revealed that educational issues were of moderate importance and that voters were more interested in restructuring educational finance and governance than in reducing school budgets. Still the passage of the measure…

Because Louisiana is facing financial difficulties, the impact of reductions in federal aid since 1980 has been severe. With a state economy dependent on gas, oil, and agriculture, Louisiana suffers when oil prices are low and farming costs are high. Reduced tax income for the state lowers state spending, forcing additional enterprises out of…