Reapportioning the Budget in Lean Times: School-Level Spending During the Great Recession

• In Event: AERA Poster Session 3
  In Poster Session: Human Capital and Education Finance

Abstract

While school budgets are often designed with strategic plans and prior trends, economic shocks may greatly disrupt customary practices and reveal underlying school priorities. This paper explores how building-level spending was reapportioned during the worst of the great recession. Using data covering every school in Texas from 2008-2012, we examine how hard-hit schools reacted and prioritized spending towards horizontal or vertical equity. Preliminary results show that urban and charter schools pulled from regular education towards at-risk student support, while rural and suburban schools increased regular education spending at the expense of targeted services. These results have considerable policy and practice implications for school leadership and stakeholders, specifically in regard to who the budget prioritizes when times are lean.

Author

• Andrew Pendola, Auburn University