How School Systems Alter Their Spending on Administrative Services Under Accountability Reform Pressures

• In Event: Labor Markets and Economics of Education

Abstract

Recent reform pressures and prevailing assertions of "bloated" school systems call for an investigation of the extent to which administrative services consume school budgets and how that has changed over time. Analyzing data for the last two decades, we find evidence of dramatic cut in district administration spending and less so in school administration spending. Such spending patterns seem to differ by level of poverty among districts indicating another layer of constraints that some districts face. Combined, these findings provide evidence that districts seem to respond to reform pressures differently depending on their own conditions and constraints.

Authors

• Yas Nakib, The George Washington University

• Drew Atchison, The George Washington University