Honors Theses
Date of Award
Spring 5-10-2025
Document Type
Undergraduate Thesis
Department
Public Policy Leadership
First Advisor
Melissa Bass
Second Advisor
Susan McClelland
Third Advisor
Douglas Davis
Relational Format
Dissertation/Thesis
Abstract
Following the decade after K-12 public education funding cuts brought on by the Great Recession, some states are addressing these funding cuts with changes to their funding formulas. This comparative case study identifies trends of significant changes in education funding formulas since the end of the Great Recession in states with majority Republican legislatures—red states. The states analyzed in this study are Texas, Tennessee, and Mississippi. The research analyzes what caused the states to change their education funding formulas as well as trends regarding the changes of the actual education funding formula. With other red states looking to change their education funding formulas, these case studies serve as examples. The research design involves three main components: examining the old state education funding formula for each state, the process of reform to create the new state education funding formula, and an analysis of the new education funding formula and its implementation. The findings show that each of the three states, while all different, had some similarities when it came to the reasons that may have motivated the change of the state funding formula, such as lawsuits and funding disparities between their districts. Each state also had similar priorities of less reliance on local funding and supporting higher-needs students.
Recommended Citation
Watts, Hannah E., "Identifying the trends of K-12 funding formula reforms in red states: a comparative case study of Texas, Tennessee and Mississippi." (2025). Honors Theses. 3344.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/hon_thesis/3344
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