"Getting poor kids out of failing schools" sounds like an altruistic cause most Americans support. However, one policy mechanism utilized to achieve that result, parental choice vouchers, has a checkered past. This descriptive analysis explores the policy-bubble created when state legislators eschewed their constitutional responsibility…

The economic meltdown has hit U.S. college campuses, and higher education is on the chopping block in state budgets, with cuts totaling hundreds of millions of dollars already approved and hundreds of millions in more cuts on the way. As veteran legislators, the authors have seen this story play out before in previous recessions. The mindset on…

Institutions, individuals, policies, and interactions are identified as the four research perspectives that have guided most legislative studies and that could help to identify promising areas for future investigation of education issues. The discussion of each perspective includes a review of landmark research and comments on its contributions…

Focusing on women as state policymakers, this theme issue covers such topics as women in state cabinets and fundraising for women candidates. Discusses the recent rise of women in public office, their strategy of collaboration instead of confrontation, and the characteristics and leadership traits that women need to succeed in politics. (GEA)

It is essential for a campus to designate a representative to develop a program for both disseminating information to legislators and cultivating good relations with state governments. This person should know area legislators and should work with them to prepare annual programs of activities for members of the general assembly. (MLW)

Five papers are presented from a legislative seminar on budgeting for higher education and the legislative oversight process. In "Budgeting: A University Perspective," Jack K. Williams addresses the preparation of an institutional budget, what legislators should know about budgets, plans for no-growth or retrenchment, and the importance…

Perspectives on the legislative process in Virginia and the relationship between the higher education community and the legislature are presented by a state senator. Virginia's legislature operates on a 60-day calendar basis, has an executive budget, and the governor has item veto power. The budget process requires that constituencies needing…

A case study illustrating the political influences on higher education in a hypothetical state is presented. Higher education became a target for reform by the state's governor, who expressed interest in the sharing of resources between institutions in close geographic proximity; supported the more extensive use of management tools as a means of…

Politics is seen as likely to play an important role in higher education during the 1980s. The best way to ensure continued public support and funding from the state is by demonstrating academic quality. Trustees must play a central role in political influence/pressure brought to bear on legislators. (MLW)

In order to work within the legislative framework, it is suggested, administrators and trustees must concern themselves with five essentials: key calendar dates, specific committee structures, the chairman's power, the party in control, and the flow of legislation. Administrators must also know the legislators, the issues, and the governor. (MLW)

This paper examines various ways in which states, colleges, and universities are balancing tensions between demands for greater institutional autonomy and demands for greater accountability to state legislatures. Noted are the states' varying fiscal situations, mixed messages on autonomy given by state governments to institutions, and increasing…

The legislative process in the U. S. Congress is considered, and personal perspectives on federal/state roles in postsecondary education are offered. Members of the House Committee on Education and Labor are identified, and information is provided about the eight subcommittees. The comparable authorizing committee in the Senate is the Labor and…

Characteristics of state coordinating boards or governing boards are briefly outlined, and the nature and character of political relationship of the board with other agencies are examined. The board is characterized by its limited powers, its nonpolitical base, and its restricted clientele. In dealing with the executive agency, it is important to…

The role of research and information in legislative decisionmaking is discussed. It is suggested that planning is of marginal utility to state legislatures. The primary obstacles to planning in the legislative arena are the turnover among state legislators, internal shifts of power, and the legislative tendency to deal with discrete policy issues…

A Michigan State senator discusses institutional relationships with the state legislature and communication problems between institution and government that interfere with policy and budgeting processes. (MSE)