Pennsylvania has historically operated one of the nation's least equitable state school finance systems, and within that system exist some of the nation's most fiscally disadvantaged public school districts. The persistent inequalities of Pennsylvania's school finance system are not entirely a result of simple lack of effort, as policies intended…

The measure of district wealth used by a state is a critical factor in reducing the potential extremes in available resources that may occur across districts. To be effective, the state definition of wealth should correlate closely with the local tax structure that is available to school districts to raise local revenues. Conversely, if wealth is…

Pennsylvania's mathematical modeling technique to evaluate tax reform proposals requires the following data: personal income at the local level and measures of the breakdown of property tax payment by land use classification. The simulation technique could be readily adapted in reorganizing educational finance systems. (MLF)

Reports the results of a study measuring the equity of Pennsylvania's school finance system following the state's school finance reform of 1977. Uses a measure of actual instructional expense to compile data for a three-year period, and identifies two equity standards--equalization and fiscal neutrality--as bases for measurement. (JW)

This paper discusses selected techniques for measuring equity in a state school finance system and focuses on the distribution of fiscal outcomes among school districts in Pennsylvania. Measures of dispersion, measures of relationship, and winners-losers ratios are demonstrated with data from a small sample of school districts. Data from a…

In the education world, the existence of funding inequities has long been a known fact, but the sources of these inequities have not always been obvious. Typically, local property tax variation has been blamed as the sole, or at least primary, cause of inequalities and called for greater state funding as the solution. In practice, however, it is…

In 1993, Project FORUM issued a report (Ahearn, 1993) that provided information on resources available to states and districts in accessing Medicaid reimbursements for services for students with disabilities, a relatively new source of funding at that time. It is now over 10 years since Medicaid funds were approved for use for special education…

After decades of decline, Scranton can capitalize on the unprecedented federal emergency relief provided to schools and communities in the pandemic and its wake. To do so, Scranton must recognize and address the threat to the city's public school system. Great public schools are the lifeblood of any thriving community, attracting and retaining…

This study used data from online focus groups collected from November 2014 to April 2015 to understand college students' decision-making processes when borrowing money to finance their education. Data were collected using an online course management system. Results suggest that (a) students relied heavily on advice from parents, guidance…

Societal developments occurring within the United States over the next 10 to 15 years that should be considered in constructing the new master plan for higher education in Pennsylvania are explored in this research report. National data collected by the Institute for the Future are re-interpreted along with newly-synthesized information related to…

Educators nationwide confront a troubling phenomenon: Increasingly, students leave high school unready for college, as evidenced by high rates of placement into remedial courses and low rates of college completion. Many students also lack either the attitudes or skills essential to succeed in a postsecondary setting, or knowledge of how to apply…

Pennsylvania state policymakers have taken steps to address issues of educational equity across school districts by amending the school-finance funding system. Pennsylvania relies on local property tax revenues as a major source of funding. This paper examines the effect of the property-tax-base formula on educational expenditures in the state.…

Over the last decade, state efforts to build stronger data infrastructure and integrate data about early childhood services have continued to grow. A stronger data infrastructure supports states in more easily linking data across programs, which in turn makes it easier to analyze and use that data to answer important policy questions. An Early…

The funding of public education in America has been a primary concern for government officials at the federal, state, and local levels for several generations. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, this expenditure accounts for the single largest allocation in most state and local government operating budgets (Stanley and…

Michigan has a problem. By several measures, the achievement of students attending its K-12 educational system has not kept pace with other states. Although Michigan's student achievement has improved over the past decade, the improvement has been modest, and achievement in many other states has easily surpassed that in Michigan. Furthermore,…