An examination of the federal role in school finance : hearings before the Subcommittee on Education, Arts, and Humanities of the Committee on Labor and Human Resources, United States Senate, One Hundred Third Congress, first session, on examining the nee

294 Pages·1993·11.5 MB·English

by  United States. Congress. Senate. Committee on Labor and Human Resources. Subcommittee on Education, Arts, and Humanities

S. Hrg. 103-254
^
\ AN EXAMINATION OF THE FEDERAL ROLE IN
SCHOOL nNANCE
V4.L
11/4;S. HRG. 103-254
«• Exaninatlo. of He feier.l Rol»...
HEARINGS
BEFORE THE
SUBCOMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, AETS AND
HUMANITIES
OFTHE
COMMITTEE ON
LABOR AND HUMAN RESOURCES
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED THIRD CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
ON
EXAMINING THE NEED FOR SCHOOL FINANCE REFORM, FOCUSING ON
THE ADEQUACY OF EDUCATIONAL FINANCE IN THE UNITED STATES
AND ITS EFFECT ON THE QUALITY OF EDUCATION
JULY 26, 27, AND AUGUST 3, 1993
F*rinted for the use of the Committee on Labor and Human Resources
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S. Hrg. 103-254
AN EXAMINATION OF THE FEDERAL ROLE IN
SCHOOL HNANCE
V4.L
11/4;S. HRG. 103-254
fti ExininatioB of tie Federal Role...
HEARINGS
BEFORE THE
SUBCOMMITTEE ON EDUCATION, ARTS AND
HUMANITIES
OFTHE
COMMITTEE ON
LABOR AND HUMAN RESOURCES
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED THIRD CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
ON
EXAMINING THE NEED FOR SCHOOL FINANCE REFORM, FOCUSING ON
THE ADEQUACY OF EDUCATIONAL FINANCE IN THE UNITED STATES
AND ITS EFFECT ON THE QUALITY OF EDUCATION
JULY 26, 27, AND AUGUST 3, 1993
Printed for the use of the Committee on Labor and Human Resources
-^J^Gf;
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OVnCY^'O^Ojj.
73-361ee WASHINGrrON : 1993
^-^*rS
ForsalebytheU.S.GovernmentPrintingOffice ^f^L
SuperintendentofDocuments,CongressionalSalesOffice,Washington,DC 20402 Q*>
COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND HUMAN RESOURCES
EDWARD M. KENNEDY, Masflachuaetts. Chairman
CLAIBORNE PELL. Rhode Island NANCY LANDON KASSEBAUM, Kansaa
HOWARD M. METZENBAUM. Ohio JAMES M. JEFFORDS, Vermont
CHRISTOPHERJ. DODD, Connecticut DANCOATS, Indiana
PAUL SIMON, Illinoia JUDD GREGG, New Hampshire
TOM HARKIN, Iowa STROM THURMOND, South Carolina
BARBARA A. MIKULSKI, Maryland ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah
JEFF BINGAMAN, New Mexico DAVE DURENBERGER. Minnesota
PAUL D. WELLSTONE, Minnesota
HARRIS WOFFORD, Pennsylvania
NlCR LlTTLKFlELD, StaffDirectorand ChiefCountel
Susan K. HatTAN, MinorityStaffDirector
SUBCOMMnTEB ON EDUCATION, ARTS AND HUMANITIES
CLAIBORNE PELL, Rhode Island, Chairman
HOWARD M. METZENBAUM, Ohio JAMES M. JEFFORDS, Vermont
CHRISTOPHERJ. DODD, Connecticut NANCY LANDON KASSEBAUM, Kansas
PAUL SIMON, Illinois DAN COATS. Indiana
BARBARAA. MIKULSKI, Maryland JUDD GREGG, New Hampshire
JEFF BINGAMAN, New Mexico STROM THURMOND, South Carolina
EDWARD M. KENNEDY, Massachusetts ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah
PAUL D. WELLSTONE, Minnesota DAVE DURENBERGER, New Mexico
HARRIS WOFFORD, Pennsylvania
TOM HARKIN, Iowa
David V. Evans, StaffDirector
Pam Devitt. MinorityPrvfeMiionalStaff
ai)
(\
^
CONTENTS
STATEMENTS
July 26, 1993
Page
Pell, Hon. Claiborne, aU.S. SenatorfromtheStateofRhode Island 1
HDiocdkdr,odH,onG..ChArlains,topphroefreJs.s,ora,U.IlSl.inSoeisnaSttoartefrUonmivtehresiSttya,teSopfriCnognfnieecldt,icuILt; Enc 2
A. Hanushek, professor ofeconomics and public policy. University ofRoch-
ester, Rochester, NY; Ronald F. Ferguson, associate professor, John F.
Kennedy School of Government, Canonridge, MA; and Landa Trentham,
professor. AuburnUniversity,Auburn, AL 4
Prepared statements:
Mr. Hickrod(with an attachment) 7
Mr. Hanushek 1°
Ms. Trentham 36
Jeffords,Hon.JamesM., aU.S. Senatorfromthe State ofVermont 49
Benson, Charles S., professor ofeducation. University ofCaUfomia at Berke-
ley, Berkeley, CA; Robert Berne, associate dean. School of Public Service,
New York University, New York, NY, and Albert Cortez, Intercultural
DevelopmentResearchAssociation, SanAntonio, TX 50
Preparedstatements:
Mr. Benson °2
Mr. Berne ^oo
Mr. Cortez
July 27, 1993
Dodd, Hon. ChristopherJ., aU.S. Senatorfromthe StateofConnecticut 79
Jeffords, Hon.JamesM., aU.S. Senatorfromthe State ofVermont 80
Simon, Hon. Paul, aU.S.SenatorfromtheState ofIllinois 81
Romer, Roy, Governor, State of Colorado, Boulder, CO, on behalf of the
National Governors'Association, prepared statement 82
Jadcson, Thomas C, member, board of education, New HaveMnD, CT; and
Sedonia Williamson, teacher, Douglas HighSchool, Baltimore, 98
Odden, Allan, Center forResearch in EducationFinance, University ofSouth-
em California, Los Angeles, CA;HenryJ. Aaron, director, EconomicStudies
Program, Brookings Institution, Washington, DC; and Doug Chiappetta,
internal manager, Vermont DepartmentofEducation, Montpeuer, VT 112
r*reparedstatements:
Mr. Odden
}JJ
Mr.Aaron 124
Mr. Chiappetta(withattachments) 129
AUGUOT 3, 1993
Wellstone,Hon. Paul D., aUJS. Senatorfromthe State ofMinnesota 145
Bingaman, Hon. Jeff, a\JJS. Senatorfromthe State ofNewMexico 146
Schmoke, Kurt L., mayor, city of Baltimore, Baltimore, MD; the Honorable
Xavier Becerra, a Menier of Congress from the State of California; and
Bill L. Taylor, attorney,Washington, DC W7
Prepared statements:
MayorSchmoke }50
Mr. Bacerra |58
Mr.Taylor 168
(III)
IV
Pa»B
Fernandez, Joseph A., president, Council ofthe Great City Sdiools, Washing-
ton, DC:Marimi Nfomauser, director. Education Law Center, Inc., NewarK,
NJ; and Maiimi Gittell, Howard Samuels State Management and Policy
Center, The City University of New Yoric Graduate School, New York,
NY 182
Preparedstatements:
A&.Fernandez(withan attachment) 185
Ms. Morhauser(withan attachment) 196
Ms. Gittell 214
Alexander, Kern, Viivinia Pblytechnic Institute and State University, Rich-
mond, VA: Joe Natnan, director, Center for Sdiool Change, Minneapolis,
MN; and Paula J. Prahl, MdiNrector ofeducation policy, Minnesota Business
Partnership,Minneapolis, 230
Mr.Alexander 237
Mr.Nathan 274
Ms.Prahl 282
CIV)
SCHOOL FE^ANCE: AN OVERVIEW
MONDAY, JULY 26, 1993
U.S. Senate,
Subcommittee on Education, Arts and Humanities, of
THE Committee on Labor and Human Resources,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 2:05 p.m., in room
SD-430, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Senator Pell (chairman of
the subcommittee) presiding.
Present: Senators Pell, Dodd, and Jeffords.
Opening Statement of Senator Pell
Senator Pell. The subcommittee will come to order.
This marks the first in a series of subcommittee hearings on the
difficult issue of school finance. Today we will look into the broad
question of whether or not there should be a Federal role in edu-
cation finance, and if so, what should that role be and how much
do we expect to be accomplished at the Federal level.
During committee consideration of the Goals 2000: Educate
America Act, seversd subcommittee members expressed strong in-
terest in school finance. These hearings are the result ofthat inter-
est. This afternoon's hearing will be followed by a hearing tomor-
row morning to be chaired by Senator Dodd. It will focus on how
we pay for our schools. On August 3, Senator Wellstone will chair
a hearing to give us a grassroots perspective on equity in edu-
cation; and Senator Simon will chair a field hearing in Illinois in
the near future, and we are working with Senator Bingaman to ac-
complish his interests in a hearing perhaps in New Mexico.
Clearly, the primary vehicle for considering the Federal role in
school finance is the upcoming reauthorization of the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act. What we ultimate decide or decide
not to do in this area will be done within the context of that reau-
thorization and that reauthorization alone.
Let me make clear that I have no preconceived position with re-
spect to this issue. We are all aware of the complexity issue from
State to State, and within the States, from community to commu-
nity. I am equally aware that there are no easy answers. I know
I speak for all my colleagues when I say that we are ready to learn
more about this issue, and that we look to our witnesses not only
to add to the store ofour knowledge but also to counsel and advise
us on how to proceed. This is without question one ofthe most per-
plexing and difficult questions confronting education today and one
that we must examine with thoughtful and careful consideration.
(1)
2
I look forward to what we will learn today and the hearings to
come.
I will now turn to Senator Dodd.
Opening Statement of Senator Dodd
Senator Dodd. Let me first of all begin by thanking you, Mr.
Chairman. The distinguished chairman of the Subcommittee on
Education has been a leader in creative ideas in education probably
for longer than he c£ires to remember. But as I have often said long
after we have all completed our service here, the name ofClaiborne
Pell will go down in mstory as one ofour countr5r's most innovative
and creative thinkers in terms of educational poUcy. There are Ut-
erally thousands ofpeople today in the United States who are get-
ting a better education because ofthings like the Pell Grant. Given
this history of leadership, it is not unexpected that the distin-
guished senior Senator from Rhode Island would be taking the lead
on an issue like this, which is one ofthe most perplexing problems,
as he has said, facing our local communities and our States.
Mr. Chairman, just a few other thoughts, if I could. We begin
today a very important series ofhearings on school finance, and I
look forward to being deeply involved in the discussion as to how
we in the Federal Government might play a constructive role. This
subject has been overlooked, in mv view, for too many years o—n the
national level as our States and local schools have struggled and
"struggled" is hardly an adequ—ate word to describe what has gone
on at tne State and local level ^to try to come up with needed dol-
lars to support their educational efforts.
We often begin hearings on complex problems with a draft piece
of legislation before us, our first cut, ff vou would, at a solution.
That is normally how hearings are conoucted. But today we are
l^oing to begin a very different process. All ofus want to rectify the
inequities in the current system and improve education for all chil-
dren. But fi'ankly, the best way to get there fi'om here is unclear
in this Senator's mind. Despite the fact that I know where Fd like
to end up, I am not sure how we get there.
So to some extent, we start with a clean slate. I don't bring any
baggage to this debate. I don't have a preconceived idea and notion,
nor do, I think, most ofmy colleagues on the committee.
It is not clear, in my view, what the Federal role should be in
this effort. Federal resources are limited. Everyone knows that.
Today the Federal Government contributes only 6 percent of the
dollars spent on elementary and secondary education.
But while the solutions are unclear, we can't forget what this is
all about. It is about our children. Last week this committee heard
compelling testimony from Joycelyn Elders about the importance of
safeg^uarding our children, our countp^'s most precious resource.
Whether children become drugs statistics or dropout statistics, they
are still lost to all of us. At its very core, school finance is fun-
damentally about children. If we stop putting a Federal label on
them, a State label on them, a local jurisdiction label on them, and
think about them as just children who have needs and about how
we take whatever resources are available and start focusing them
on the needs of children, regardless of some arbitrary, politically
drawn boundary, then I think we might come to some answers
about this problem a little more readily, without the clutter of po-
litical definitions.
I make a practice oftrying to visit a high school in my State each
week when I am home. I have visited with students from every,
single pubHc high school in my State in the last 10 years, so stu-
dents can have the chance to see their United States Senator and
talk with me. At each school, I have met bright, talented young
people. But the disparities I have seen in my own small State of
Connecticut are alarming. In fact, in some cases, they are abso-
lutely incredible when you consider the short distance, indeed
walking distance, between some ofthe most incredible high schools
in this country in terms of opportunity, and some of the most des-
perate in terms of need. The contrast is glaring. There are public
high schools in my State that would literally stand up against a lot
of college campuses, and that is not an exaggeration. They have
beautifully manicured lawns, state-of-the-art Tabs, diverse course
offerings, incredible athletic facilities. And then there are some,
only miles away, that are struggling with old, deteriorating build-
ings. I remember I went into one school not long £^o on a rainy
day, and rain was pouring through the leaky ceiling into the recep-
tion areajust in front oftiie principal's office.
My sister teaches in the largest inner city elementary school in
my State in Hartford. I was with her not too long ago when she
was out, doing some shopping, and she said she had to get some
things for school. And when I asked her, "What do you need?" she
said, "I've got to—get pencils and paper and toilet paper." And I am
not exaggerating ^because there are not enough resources for those
basic needs. And she is dealing with the youngest of our children,
3-, 4-, 5- and 6-year-olds in early childhood development programs.
So, mv sister, a teacher in one of our most affluent States, goes
out, ana with her own resources out of her own pocket, buys pen-
cils, and paper and toilet paper for her students. I don't know of
anyone in this country who would be proud to think that sort of
thing happens. And yet it does, every, single day. Teachers buy
basic supplies, roofs leak, and children s education suffers.
And it isn't just my State. Across the countrv, there are similar
disparities. Our system oflocal financing for scnools seems to have
failed to deal with this problem, and our children pay the price for
this failure in lower achievement, poor attendance and lost poten-
tial.
These days, we are asking much of our schools and much of our
children in the form of higher standards, goals, and new assess-
ments. Our childi^n are the economic building blocks, and we are
We
demanding Uiat they be strong and prepared for the future.
must make sure that we are a partner in this effort. I believe that
means we must deal with the tJiomy issue of school financing and
some—how provide our schools with necessary resources. That is all
ofus ^notjust those ofus here at the Federal level.
I look forward to these hearings, which I believe will begin that
critical process. Our witnesses today include some ofthose few who
have carefully studied this problem, and I look forward to your tes-
timony. Tomorrow, we will continue our work on this important
issue at a hearing that I will be chairing. Governor Romer of Colo-
rado will join us, along with expert witnesses, and several individ-
uals who must face inequities every day in their schools.
So, Mr. Chairman, I will close where I began. I thank vou for
your involvement and concern on this issue, and hopefully, through
this process we may be able to start coming up with some real an-
swers to get away from what I would describe as sort of a "civil
war" environment, where we pit suburban parents and families
against urban and rural. We are never going to solve the problem
by having one side or the other "win**, if you will. Although, were
any side to win, I think we would all be the losers. But ifwe could
get everyone to start thinking about how to deal with this problem
without ttireatening staggeringly higher taxes or threatening any-
one's sense of security about where they live and where their kids
go to school, then I think we can begin to come up with some an-
swers here. If this hearing process turns into an "us versus them"
debate, then we aren't going to be any further along in this discus-
sion or in reaching a resolution than we ever were.
So, speaking just for myself, I am truly interested in having us
try to bring a community together here, and not hear about the re-
criminations and finger-pointing that are so much associated with
this eflFort and that have created so many problems in the past.
So again, I thank our witnesses for being here today, and Mr.
Chairman, I really look forward to the testimony and the process
over the next number ofmonths.
Senator Pell. Thank you very much indeed, particularly for your
nice words, for which I am grateful.
We shall turn now to our panel and start off with Dr. G. Alan
Hickrod, Professor at Illinois State University.
STATEMENTS OF G. ALAN HICKROD, PROFESSOR, DJLINOIS
STATE UNIVERSITY, SPRINGFIELD, IL; ERIC A. HANUSHEK,
PROFESSOR OF ECONOMICS AND PUBLIC POLICY, UNIVER-
SITY OF ROCHESTER, ROCHESTER, NY; RONALD F. FER-
GUSON,ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, JOHN F. KENNEDY SCHOOL
OF GOVERNMENT, CAMBRIDGE, MA;AND LANDATRENTHAM,
PROFESSOR,AUBURNUNIVERSITY,AUBURN,AL
Mr. Hickrod. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
My name is Alan Hickrod, and I am a Distinguished Professor
am
of Educational Administration at Illinois State University. I
also the director for the Center of Educational Finance at ISU and
a past president of the American Educational Finance Association,
as are several that you will hear this afternoon.
As Senator Dodd has indicated, differences in expenditure levels
between school districts have been with us for a very long period
of time. The earliest study that I know of goes back to the end of
the 19th century in Massachusetts, in 1890, when they were ex-
ploring differences in expenditure per pupil. There were also a
number ofstudies conducted in the 1920's, including a very famous
one in Illinois that talks about huge differences in expenditure per
pupil between school districts, and the date is 1922. So this has
been around for quite a period oftime.
I think a new development, however, is in the fact that these ex-
penditures per pupil are now growing with the passage of time.