State Fiscal Impact of the Succeed Scholarship Program 2016-2017

This report will address the fiscal impact of the SSP for the 2016-17 school year, the first year the program is available for students. As of February 2017 there were 22 students from 13 districts using the program to attend one of the 17 accredited private schools currently participating in the program. For 20 of the students we know which public school district he/she attended in 2015-16. All students must be attending a public school, relocating from out of state, or be members of an active duty military family in order to participate in the program. To estimate the fiscal effect of the program we compare the additional funding the local district would have received from the state if the SSP did not exist and compare it to the tuition cost covered thru the SSP. The difference is the net fiscal effect on the state

Squeezing the Public School Districts: The Fiscal Effect of Eliminating the Louisiana Scholarship Program on State Education Expenditures

Eliminating the Louisiana Scholarship Program (LSP) was proposed as a way to improve the financial situation of the Louisiana Department of Education budget in the current fiscal environment. A study released by the School Choice Demonstration Project (SCDP) found that the net fiscal impact on the Louisiana Department of Education budget would likely be an overall cost increase. In this study, we consider the effects that the removal or reduction of the program would have on individual districts. Districts would receive additional revenue from the state for affected students, but districts would also incur additional costs to educate these students. For each district, we compare the additional costs incurred to the additional funding received from the state. We conclude that the overall fiscal impact on districts will be negative; in other words, the overall additional variable costs incurred by the districts will be greater than the overall additional funding provided to the districts. In fact, we find that only 2 to 7 of the 69 school districts would benefit from the elimination of the program. For the affected districts, the average outcome would be a financial loss of about $1,500 per returning voucher student in 2016. In each scenario, we find that over 80% of student transfers would result in a financial loss for the local district. While we have framed this discussion in terms of the elimination of the LSP, the same analysis would be applicable to any situation that causes students to move from private schools to public schools in Louisiana, including the current funding cap which may force some current LSP students out of the program and has already generated a waitlist of over 400 students for next year

Estigma sem sanções: A (falta de) impacto dos vales de escolares (voucher) para escolas particulares no desempenho dos alunos.

Under the Florida A+ Accountability Program, Florida’s schools are graded based on student performance on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. Previously, when schools would earn their second failing grade within four years, students assigned to these schools were offered school vouchers which parents and guardians could use to transfer students to a private or another traditional public school. In January of 2006 the Florida Supreme Court declared that private school voucher component of the Florida A+ Accountability Program was unconstitutional, eliminating the threat of having these students and funds leaving to attend private schools. This exogenous shock allows us to test whether private voucher threats and the funding tied to these students led to increases in student achievement. We find no evidence that the private school voucher threats drive academic improvement beyond what is seen in schools when this private school voucher threat is removed.En el marco del Programa de Evaluación Florida A +, las escuelas de la Florida se clasifican en función del rendimiento de los estudiantes en el Examen de Evaluación Integral de la Florida. Anteriormente, cuando las escuelas recibían una calificación negativa en un lapso de cuatro años, a los estudiantes de esas escuelas se les ofrecían vales escolares (voucher) que los padres y tutores podrían utilizar para transferir a los estudiantes a una escuela pública tradicional u otra privada. En enero de 2006 la Corte Suprema de la Florida declaró que el voucher para las escuelas privadas del Programa de Responsabilidad Florida A + era inconstitucional, lo que elimina la amenaza de que esos estudiantes y los fondos fueran transferidos las escuelas privadas. Este choque exógeno nos permite comprobar si las amenazas de los vouchers y la financiación vinculada a estos estudiantes llevaron a aumentar el rendimiento estudiantil. No encontramos ninguna evidencia de que las amenazas de los vouchers generara mejorías académicas más allá de lo que se observó en las escuelas cuando se eliminó la amenaza de los vouchers.No âmbito do programa de avaliação Flórida A +, as escolas da Flórida são classificados com base no desempenho do estudante na Avaliação Global da Flórida. Anteriormente, quando as escolas receberam uma avaliação negativa em um período de quatro anos, aos alunos dessas escolas foram oferecidos vales escolares (voucher) que os pais e responsáveis poderiam utilizar para transferir os alunos para uma escola pública tradicional ou outra privada. Em janeiro de 2006, o Supremo Tribunal da Flórida decidiu que o programa de vales (voucher) para escolas particulares, do programa Flórida A + era inconstitucional, eliminando a ameaça de que esses alunos e os fundos fossem transferidos para escolas particulares. Este choque exógeno nos permite verificar se a ameaça dos vouchers e financiamentos vinculados a esses alunos levaram a aumentar o desempenho acadêmico dos alunos. Nós não encontramos nenhuma evidência de que a ameaça de vouchers gerara melhorias acadêmicas para além do que foi observado nas escolas onde a ameaça dos vouchers foi removida.

State-Level Fiscal Impact of the Succeed Scholarship Program 2017-2018

Arkansas created the Succeed Scholarship Program in the spring 2015 legislative session when House Bill 1552 was passed. This program allows students with disabilities to receive state funding for private school tuition up to the foundation funding amount determined by the matrix funding system used in Arkansas

State and District Fiscal Effects of a Universal Education Savings Account Program in Arkansas

Legislators in Arkansas have proposed a bill to increase educational choice through an Education Savings Account (ESA) program available to every child across the state. While many studies on the financial impact of existing ESA, voucher, and scholarship programs in the United States have found overall benefits to the state and individual districts, it may not be the case for a universally-accessible ESA since most existing programs are targeted to students based on need. A universal ESA would make ESAs available to all K-12 students in the state, so the fiscal impact is expected to be less beneficial than a targeted voucher or scholarship program. We use the Arkansas state funding formula to estimate the net impact of the proposed ESA program on the state budget overall. We also use the state education expenditure report in order to estimate the impact on each public school district in the state. Using our most defensible set of assumptions, we find that a universally-accessible ESA would result in small financial benefits to the state overall and to about half of the individual public school districts. Specifically, we estimate the program to result in around $2.8 million in financial benefits to the state in the first year. Additionally, we find that 50.6 percent of districts would financially benefit, while 55.5 percent of individual student transfers would result in financial benefits to their local school districts

The Fiscal Effects of Eliminating the Louisiana Scholarship Program on State Education Expenditures

Eliminating the Louisiana Scholarship Program has been proposed as a way to reduce state education expenditures for the upcoming fiscal year. Drawing upon Louisiana’s education funding formulas, we determine that the overall effect of removing the program will increase state education expenditures. It is true that the state would avoid $41.6 million of spending if the voucher program is eliminated. However, each current voucher student who returns to a public school increases the local district’s necessary education expenditures without increasing the local tax revenue for schools, obligating the state to provide increased funding to the district. While our results depend on which assumptions we use, our analysis generally indicates the net effect of eliminating the program is an increase in state funding to local districts. In particular, we find evidence of the need for additional funding in nearly all scenarios in which the program is eliminated unless at least 13.52% of current voucher users stay in private schools and pay tuition out of pocket or through other private means

College Readiness, Student Expectations and Sucess: The Role of Non-Cognitive Skills

Attending college is a significant human capital investment but only about 56% of those who start college will have a completed degree 6 years later. This makes identifying which skills are associated with college success an important policy concern. We surveyed over 1,100 entering college freshmen, majoring in business and engineering at a public university in the US, and combined this information with administrative data to create a comprehensive data set that, in addition to the usual academic performance data, cognitive ability measures, and demographics, also included measures of non-cognitive skills, personality traits, and student expectations about college success. With this information we analyzed if students’ subjective expectations about their future success in college were related to non-cognitive skills and whether they are realistic, as compared to student’s performance trajectory at the end of their first year in college. Moreover, we compared student’s academic progress at the end of the first year with what would be objectively expected for them, given their background and preparation at entrance. We identify students performing below and above objective expectations and study noncognitive skills related to their objective performance. We find that non-cognitive skills are associated with academic subjective expectations of college success and objective performance in college, even after controlling for cognitive ability and time spent studying, but the relationship between specific non-cognitive skills, academic subjective expectations and academic objective performance varies across disciplines

How & Why The Arkansas Parental Empowerment For Education Choice Act of 2017 (HB 1222) Saves the State Money

The Education Savings Account (ESA) Program created by HB 1222 would save the state money because officials at the Department of Finance & Administration have to follow state law

São Bem Sucedidos Professores-Treinadores? A Eficácia dos Treinadores Como Professores de Leitura e Matemática

Math and reading teachers who also coach athletics in the public school system are challenged to balance the responsibilities that come with fulfilling dual occupational roles. While many studies have examined teacher-coaches' stress levels and job perception in the context of role strain, there is no evidence of how student achievement in tested subjects is affected by assignment to these teacher-coaches. A large administrative panel data set provided by the Florida Department of Education allows us to match students to teachers and use a student fixed effects approach to track changes in math and reading test scores over a seven-year time period, from 2002 through 2009. Despite the challenges associated with holding dual occupational roles, we find that students assigned to teacher-coaches perform at the same level in reading and math as when they are assigned to non-coaching teachers.Docentes de matemáticas y de lectura que también son entrenadores de atletismo en el sistema de escuelas públicas tienen el reto de equilibrar las responsabilidades que vienen con el cumplimiento de dos roles ocupacionales. Aunque muchos estudios han examinado los niveles de estrés de los profesores-entrenadores y la percepción de empleo en el contexto de la tensión asociadas al rol, no hay evidencia de cómo el rendimiento estudiantil en materias que se evalúan se ve afectada por recibir instrucción por estos profesores-entrenadores. Un gran conjunto de datos de panel administrativo establecido por el Departamento de Educación de la Florida nos permite relacionar estudiantes y profesores y el uso de un enfoque de efectos fijos para seguir los cambios en matemáticas y resultados de las pruebas de lectura durante el período de 2002 hasta 2009. A pesar de los desafíos asociados con los roles ocupacionales duales, los estudiantes asignados a profesores-entrenadores obtienen el mismo nivel en lectura y matemáticas que cuando tienen profesores no entrenadores. Os professores de matemática e leitura que são também treinadores de atletas no sistema de escolas pública têm o desafio de equilibrar as responsabilidades que vêm com a implementação de dois papéis ocupacionais. Apesar de muitos estudos examinaram os níveis de estresse dos professores-treinadores e a percepção sobre o emprego no contexto da tensão associada com o papel, não há nenhuma evidência de como o desempenho do aluno em exames é afetada por a instrução de professores-treinadores. Um grande conjunto de dados de painel administrativo estabelecido pelo Departamento de Educação da Flórida nos permite relacionar os alunos e professores e o uso de uma abordagem de efeitos fixos para controlar alterações em matemática e resultados dos testes de leitura sobre o período de 2002 até 2009. Apesar dos desafios associados com papéis ocupacionais duplas, os alunos designados para professores-treinadores obter o mesmo nível em leitura e matemática quando os professores não têm treinadores

How HB 1222 Would Save Arkansas Money

Private school choice programs have a positive fiscal impact on states because the amount of state money spent on a child in the program, or the amount of state revenue foregone in the case of tax-credit funding, is less than the state would pay if the student attended a public school