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The Design of the Rhode Island School Funding Formula: Toward a Coherent System of Allocating State Aid to Public Schools

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Title: The Design of the Rhode Island School Funding Formula: Toward a Coherent System of Allocating State Aid to Public Schools
Language: English
Authors: Wong, Kenneth K., Center for American Progress
Source: Center for American Progress. 2011.
Availability: Center for American Progress. 1333 H Street NW 10th Floor, Washington, DC 20005. Tel: 202-682-1611; Web site: http://www.americanprogress.org
Peer Reviewed: N
Page Count: 29
Publication Date: 2011
Sponsoring Agency: Ford Foundation
Document Type: Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Elementary Secondary Education
Descriptors: Educational Finance, Charter Schools, Leadership Effectiveness, State Aid, Funding Formulas, Fiscal Capacity, Public Schools, Finance Reform, School Districts, Expenditure per Student, Low Income Groups, Poverty, Economically Disadvantaged, Students, Accountability, Access to Information, Disclosure, Educational Policy, Resource Allocation
Geographic Terms: Rhode Island
Abstract: Reforming the way a state distributes its funding to local school districts is clearly a challenging task. This paper presents the Rhode Island story on school funding reform. First, the paper begins with a short history of Rhode Island's school finance system and the key factors that called for school funding reform. Second, the paper discusses the design, the rationale, and the evidence associated with the new funding formula. Several features of the state's formula are highlighted, including the cost of core instructional services that is grounded in school funding data in the New England region, the need to focus on students who come from low-income backgrounds, a consideration of local fiscal capacity in the context of concentrated poverty at the community level, and the effort to make sure that state funds follow the child when students leave a particular district or move to a charter school. The final section of the paper recaps how the key lessons learned may be applicable to other states that face the need for funding reform in the context of fiscal constraint. In the case of Rhode Island's experience, this paper finds that: (1) Effective leadership widens the policy window; (2) Independent analysis contributes to policy reform; (3) School funding formulas must first serve the student's education purpose and should not assume a need for additional funding; and (4) Accountability and transparency should be institutionalized in implementing the formula. (Contains 4 tables and 4 endnotes.)
Abstractor: ERIC
Number of References: 6
Entry Date: 2012
Accession Number: ED535993
Database: ERIC
FullText Text:
  Availability: 0
CustomLinks:
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  Data: The Design of the Rhode Island School Funding Formula: Toward a Coherent System of Allocating State Aid to Public Schools
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="SO" term="%22Center+for+American+Progress%22"><i>Center for American Progress</i></searchLink>. 2011.
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  Data: Center for American Progress. 1333 H Street NW 10th Floor, Washington, DC 20005. Tel: 202-682-1611; Web site: http://www.americanprogress.org
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  Data: 29
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  Data: 2011
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  Data: Ford Foundation
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– Name: Subject
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Educational+Finance%22">Educational Finance</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Charter+Schools%22">Charter Schools</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Leadership+Effectiveness%22">Leadership Effectiveness</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22State+Aid%22">State Aid</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Funding+Formulas%22">Funding Formulas</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Fiscal+Capacity%22">Fiscal Capacity</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Public+Schools%22">Public Schools</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Finance+Reform%22">Finance Reform</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22School+Districts%22">School Districts</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Expenditure+per+Student%22">Expenditure per Student</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Low+Income+Groups%22">Low Income Groups</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Poverty%22">Poverty</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Economically+Disadvantaged%22">Economically Disadvantaged</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Students%22">Students</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Accountability%22">Accountability</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Access+to+Information%22">Access to Information</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Disclosure%22">Disclosure</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Educational+Policy%22">Educational Policy</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Resource+Allocation%22">Resource Allocation</searchLink>
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  Label: Geographic Terms
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Rhode+Island%22">Rhode Island</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Reforming the way a state distributes its funding to local school districts is clearly a challenging task. This paper presents the Rhode Island story on school funding reform. First, the paper begins with a short history of Rhode Island's school finance system and the key factors that called for school funding reform. Second, the paper discusses the design, the rationale, and the evidence associated with the new funding formula. Several features of the state's formula are highlighted, including the cost of core instructional services that is grounded in school funding data in the New England region, the need to focus on students who come from low-income backgrounds, a consideration of local fiscal capacity in the context of concentrated poverty at the community level, and the effort to make sure that state funds follow the child when students leave a particular district or move to a charter school. The final section of the paper recaps how the key lessons learned may be applicable to other states that face the need for funding reform in the context of fiscal constraint. In the case of Rhode Island's experience, this paper finds that: (1) Effective leadership widens the policy window; (2) Independent analysis contributes to policy reform; (3) School funding formulas must first serve the student's education purpose and should not assume a need for additional funding; and (4) Accountability and transparency should be institutionalized in implementing the formula. (Contains 4 tables and 4 endnotes.)
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  Data: ED535993
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=eric&AN=ED535993
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    Languages:
      – Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 29
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Educational Finance
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Charter Schools
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Leadership Effectiveness
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: State Aid
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Funding Formulas
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Fiscal Capacity
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Public Schools
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Finance Reform
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: School Districts
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Expenditure per Student
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Low Income Groups
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Poverty
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Economically Disadvantaged
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Students
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Accountability
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Access to Information
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Disclosure
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Educational Policy
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Resource Allocation
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Rhode Island
        Type: general
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      – TitleFull: The Design of the Rhode Island School Funding Formula: Toward a Coherent System of Allocating State Aid to Public Schools
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