ERIC Number: ED584733
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2018-Feb
Pages: 39
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Is School Funding Fair? A National Report Card. Seventh Edition
Baker, Bruce; Farrie, Danielle; Sciarra, David G.
Education Law Center
"Is School Funding Fair? A National Report Card" analyzes the condition of state school finance systems with a focus on the fair distribution of resources to the neediest students. The Report Card makes a number of assumptions about how school funding systems should be designed: (1) a fair funding system should provide levels of funding based on student need; (2) student poverty is the most critical variable affecting funding levels and can serve as a proxy for other measures of disadvantage, such as racial segregation, limited English proficiency, and student mobility; (3) fair funding systems are designed "progressively" so that funding increases relative to student poverty; and (4) a sufficient overall level of funding is a crucial starting point for any funding formula to be successful. The Seventh Edition of the Report Card examines the fiscal condition of the nation's schools using data from 2015. This edition of the National Report Card, like its precursors, demonstrates that school funding remains stubbornly unfair in most states. As a result, states have failed to create finance systems that support improved student outcomes, especially among the nation's low-income students. [For the sixth edition, see ED584732.]
Descriptors: Educational Finance, Educational Equity (Finance), Financial Support, State Aid, Public Education, Elementary Secondary Education, Resource Allocation, Poverty, Early Childhood Education, Teacher Salaries, Teacher Student Ratio
Education Law Center. 60 Park Place Suite 300, Newark, NJ 07102. Tel: 973-624-1815; Fax: 973-624-7339; e-mail: elc@edlawcenter.org; Web site: http://www.edlawcenter.org
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Numerical/Quantitative Data
Education Level: Early Childhood Education
Audience: Policymakers; Teachers; Parents; Community
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: Education Law Center; Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Graduate School of Education
Identifiers - Location: United States
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A