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| Evidence-Based Funding for Student Success Act | |
|---|---|
| Name | Evidence-Based Funding for Student Success Act |
| Long title | An Act to allocate state resources for K–12 public schools based on empirically supported models of student need |
| Introduced by | various state legislatures |
| Status | varies by state |
Evidence-Based Funding for Student Success Act
The Evidence-Based Funding for Student Success Act is a legislative approach adopted in multiple United States jurisdictions to allocate K–12 public resources using empirically supported models tied to student need. It connects resource distribution with research from institutions such as Harvard University, Stanford University, University of Michigan, University of California, Berkeley and policy organizations like the Brookings Institution and the Urban Institute. Prominent state actors including governors, state education chiefs, and legislatures in states such as Texas, Kansas, Ohio, California and New York (state) have debated or enacted variations of the approach.
Originating in policy debates after litigation such as Serrano v. Priest, Edgewood Independent School District v. Kirby and Campbell County School District v. State of Wyoming, evidence-based funding models emerged to address funding disparities identified by litigants, state auditors, and commissions like the National Commission on Excellence in Education and think tanks including the Education Commission of the States. Early statutory experiments drew on research from Eric A. Hanushek, William L. Sanders, Jere R. Behrman and program evaluations by the Institute of Education Sciences. States like Tennessee, Kansas and Arkansas piloted frameworks after reports by the Government Accountability Office and consulting firms such as McKinsey & Company. High-profile political figures—governors like Bill Haslam and Sam Brownback—oversaw legislative pushes that tied funding to metrics promoted by organizations such as the Council of Chief State School Officers and National Governors Association.
Statutes typically define a base funding level and supplemental weights for factors including special education, English language learners, poverty, rural isolation, and early childhood, informed by research from James S. Coleman, Claudia Goldin, Lawrence Katz, David Card and program studies by the American Institutes for Research. Mechanisms include each state adopting an evidence-based formula, periodic adequacy studies by universities like Vanderbilt University or University of Virginia, and adjustments via hold-harmless clauses familiar from Every Student Succeeds Act implementation. Funding streams often interact with other laws such as Elementary and Secondary Education Act reauthorizations and state constitutional mandates exemplified in cases like San Antonio Independent School District v. Rodriguez.
Implementation has varied: some states convened technical advisory committees including representatives from the National Education Association, American Federation of Teachers, school finance directors, and researchers from RAND Corporation. Others phased in changes over multiple fiscal years or used reserve funds administered by state treasuries such as California State Treasurer offices. Courts in jurisdictions like Kansas (state) and Ohio adjudicated disputes about compliance with constitutional education clauses; legislative actors including state senators and representatives negotiated trade-offs with state departments like the Department of Education (United States). Local districts such as Dallas Independent School District and Los Angeles Unified School District adapted budget priorities, collective bargaining agreements with the United Teachers Los Angeles, and capital planning overseen by agencies like the U.S. Department of Education.
Empirical analyses by researchers at Princeton University, Yale University, Brown University and policy centers including the Annenberg Institute for School Reform report mixed results: some jurisdictions observed improvements in resource equity and targeted staffing, while others showed limited short-term effects on standardized outcomes measured by assessments from Educational Testing Service and metrics aligned with National Assessment of Educational Progress. Studies referencing scholars such as Roland G. Fryer and Dale Ballou evaluate distributional changes for students from low-income communities, students with disabilities, and multilingual learners enrolled in districts like Chicago Public Schools and Miami-Dade County Public Schools.
Critics—academics from Columbia University, University of Pennsylvania and advocacy groups such as The Education Trust—argue models rely on contested assumptions about cost functions and may entrench inequities if inputs do not translate to outcomes, echoing debates from Hanushek–Lindsey critiques. Political controversies involved budget trade-offs promoted by fiscal analysts at the Cato Institute and Tax Foundation, disputes over hold-harmless provisions, and litigation led by plaintiff coalitions in states like New Jersey and California. Implementation challenges included data limitations flagged by the National Center for Education Statistics, teacher workforce shortages noted by the Learning Policy Institute, and disputes over categorical funding managed by state comptrollers.
Evidence-based funding statutes intersect with federal policies such as the Every Student Succeeds Act, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Title I, Part A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, and state policies including weighted student funding pilots in Colorado, allotment models in Florida, and funding lawsuits like Abbott v. Burke. Cross-sector partners have included philanthropic actors such as the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, foundations like the Carnegie Corporation of New York, and intermediary organizations including Education Resource Strategies and the Bellwether Education Partners.
Category:School finance reform