School Corporations Research Articles

「사립학교법」과 「개인정보 보호법」의 괴리에 관한 고찰: 징계사유조사와 징계의결요구를 중심으로

Among the many challenges regarding the interpretation and application of the Personal Information Protection Act, we paid attention to the conflict between the Private School Act and the Personal Information Protection Act, which are facing in the self-audit practice of school corporations, and discussed solutions to them. Specifically, how to interpret Article 18 of the Personal Information Protection Act determines whether the audit is legal or illegal under the Private School Act, and there are cases in which audit personnel at school corporations are accused of criminal matters. Based on this awareness of the problem, this paper ① presented possible case, ② looked at the actual laws surrounding self-audit, ③ introduced the decisions of the Personal Information Protection Committee, ④ identified the application of the Personal Information Protection Act through in-depth interviews with investigative police officers, and ⑤ presented solutions to the case and promoted legislative suggestions. Investigative police officers who participated in the interview answered that they did not clearly understand the Personal Information Protection Act, and that the concept of the Personal Information Protection Act itself was ambiguous and faced considerable difficulties. As an improvement plan, it was suggested that Article 18 (2) of the Personal Information Protection Act should add “in the case of “audit” in public institutions (to which the Personal Information Protection Act applies) as a requirement for the use of personal information outside the purpose and provision of it to a third party, or include “school corporations and affiliated schools” in Article 2 (4) of the Public Audit Act.

폐교대학 구성원 보호를 위한 정부 지원방안 고찰

South Korea has a declining school-age population due to a low birth rate of 0.78, which is causing major changes in the university environment. Meanwhile, the government is evaluating the management and operation status of universities through structural reforms and inducing autonomous development of universities through financial support. However, the survival of universities is becoming a serious issue due to the lack of freshman enrollment, which started from local universities, and there are cases of universities closing down because of difficulties to operate due to decreased funding. Therefore, this study reviews the existing cases of closed universities, the government's university structural reform policies, and examines the problems of the school-age population that may appear in Korea in the future. Then, the negative effects of university closure on students, faculty, and school corporations are examined. Based on this, the purpose of this study is to propose government support measures to protect students, faculty and staff, and school corporations by examining system improvement measures related to school corporations.

An Analysis of Bylaws of Christian School Corporations in Japan: The Impact of Christianity on Organizational Governance

Keywords: bylaws; governance structure; Christian school corporations; university; Japan This study investigated the effects of Christianity-related (CR) words in bylaws on governance structures in Christian school corporations (CSCs) that established higher education institutions, such as private universities, in Japan. Governance structures in religious school corporations in Japan are characterized by the specific religion. Therefore, CR words in CSCs’ bylaws are powerful clues to identify the characteristics of their governance structures. This study examined the bylaws of three Protestant Christian CSCs in Japan: Tohoku Gakuin, Kwansei Gakuin, and Seinan Gakuin. The numbers and percentages of Christian directors, councilors, and auditors were also assessed. The results indicated that (1) Tohoku Gakuin and Kwansei Gakuin do not mention any Christian denominations, whereas Seinan Gakuin does; (2) Kwansei Gakuin does not have a Christian code for directors, whereas Tohoku Gakuin and Seinan Gakuin do; (3) all CSCs have a Christian code for councilors; (4) the lowest percentage of Christians on the board of directors is 54.5% for Tohoku Gakuin, 0% for Kwansei Gakuin, and 62.5% for Seinan Gakuin; (5) the lowest percentage of Christians on the board of councilors is 52.1% for Tohoku Gakuin, 15.4% for Kwansei Gakuin, and 54.3% for Seinan Gakuin; and (6) the lowest percentage of Christians among auditors is 0% for Tohoku Gakuin, 0% for Kwansei Gakuin, and 50% for Seinan Gakuin. Moreover, Kwansei Gakuin employs a governance system that suppresses director voting by Christian councilors, whereas, Christian councilors of Tohoku Gakuin and Seinan Gakuin encourage Christian director voting. Based on the findings, directions for further research are discussed.

Kingdon의 정책흐름모형을 활용한 「전라북도 학교자치조례」제정과정 분석

The purpose of this study is to analyze the dynamic enactment process of the 「Jeollabuk-do School Autonomy Ordinance」enacted in 2019 using Kingdon's policy stream model. The stream of policy issues includes indicators of the necessity of legal organization of school autonomous bodies, attempts to enact school autonomy ordinances by each city/provincial office of education, and feedback due to the limitations of the existing school autonomy operation. The stream of politics includes changes in the provincial atmosphere for school autonomy, the emergence and interest of a new administration, and the activities of interest groups in school autonomy ordinances. The stream of policy alternatives includes the proposal of Jeollabuk-do Office of Education, the proposal of Korean Teachers and Educational Workers' Union, the proposal of Korea Federation of Teacher's Associations, and the proposal of private school corporations and principals. These policy alternatives were influenced by policy communities such as teachers' organizations, teachers' unions, and school corporations. These three independent streams were combined as the change of administration became the trigger mechanism. In addition, as progressive policy entrepreneur such as the Jeollabuk-do Superintendent of Education is actively working to urge the enactment of the ordinance, the working-level council for promoting the school autonomy ordinance was held on March 26, 2018, combining these three streams to open a policy window. As a result, the Jeonlabuk-do School Autonomy Ordinance, which has been under legislative discussion for a long time, was finally enacted on February 1, 2019.

Management Analysis of Private Universities by Categorization Method Combining Financial Indicators: Focusing on Private University Finances Following the Revision of the Accounting Standards for School Corporations

Management Analysis of Private Universities by Categorization Method Combining Financial Indicators: Focusing on Private University Finances Following the Revision of the Accounting Standards for School Corporations

The Effect of In-Person Primary and Secondary School Instruction on County-Level Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Spread in Indiana.

ObjectiveTo determine the county-level effect of in-person primary and secondary school reopening on daily cases of SARS-CoV-2 in Indiana.MethodsThis is a county-level population-based study using a panel data regression analysis of the proportion of in-person learning to evaluate an association with community-wide daily new SARS-CoV-2 cases. The study period was July 12-October 6, 2020. We included 73 out of 92 (79.3%) Indiana counties in the analysis, accounting for 85.7% of school corporations and 90.6% of student enrollment statewide. The primary exposure was the proportion of students returning to in-person instruction. The primary outcome was the daily new SARS-CoV-2 cases per 100,000 residents at the county level.ResultsThere is a statistically significant relationship between the proportion of students attending K-12 schools in-person and the county level daily cases of SARS-CoV-2 28 days later. For all ages, the coefficient of interest (β) is estimated at 3.36 (95% CI: 1.91—4.81; p < 0.001). This coefficient represents the effect of a change the proportion of students attending in-person on new daily cases 28 days later. For example, a 10 percentage point increase in K-12 students attending school in-person is associated with a daily increase in SARS-CoV-2 cases in the county equal to 0.336 cases/100,000 residents of all ages.ConclusionIn-person primary and secondary school is associated with a statistically significant but proportionally small increase in the spread of SARS-CoV-2 cases.

An Analysis of Lunch Shaming in Indiana and Proposed Solutions

This report provides an analysis of lunch shaming—its causes and prevalence in Indiana—and proposes solutions at the local and state level. We used publicly available data from the Indiana Department of Education (“IDOE”) website and questionnaire feedback from 197 of the 290 Indiana public school corporations. Additionally, we analyzed 61 unpaid meal charge policies for compliance with the United States Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) and IDOE guidelines. Further, analysis presents a clearer picture of the wider scope of school corporations’ administrative responses when a child cannot pay for a meal. Data provided throughout the report and illustrated in graphs and tables included as appendices shows that the balance of school lunch funds ranges from millions of dollars in debt to millions of dollars in surplus. However, the overall financial health of the school lunch funds did not correlate to the amount of unpaid meal charges. Further, analysis of the unpaid meal charge policies shows that: many were challenging to find; some were nonpublic; several attempt to provide alternative meals; and younger students are treated differently than older students. Last, the policies leave unclear what happens to a student once he or she exhausts the number of allotted alternative meals. The report suggests many schools use lunch shaming of students as a tactic to pressure parents to quickly respond and pay a meal charge debt. This technique seems to be a cheap, thoughtless, and ineffective solution crafted by school corporations to comply with strict restrictions and regulations imposed by Indiana statutes and federal rules. Further, while we know –from newspapers and social media - lunch shaming occurs in Indiana, the scope of the problem is difficult to measure because the IDOE does not collect information about unpaid meal charge debt. Finally, while unpaid meal charge policies are a good idea, in practice it is unclear how these published policies have reduced incidents of lunch shaming. Many of the policies are identical, and it does not appear that parents provided input into the drafting of these policies, as suggested by the USDA. The report contains the following recommendations: • Proposed legislation to prohibit lunch shaming and eradicate incentives to lunch shame; • Proposed direct action campaign for parents to address the problem at their local schools; • Improved data collection by the IDOE to fully understand the scope of lunch shaming; and • Improved unpaid meal charge policies for each school by improving the accessibility and clarity of each policy. The report is not without limitations. These include: availability of data, other academic and professional responsibilities, and our relatively new engagement in this area of law. However, we are enthusiastic about this issue and appreciate the collective effort goal: to cease lunch shaming. School corporations are invested in the health, safety, and wellness of each student they serve. Many school corporations achieve this mission on a shoestring budget. Additionally, most parents desire to protect their children. Together, we can reduce or eliminate lunch shaming of Hoosier kids.

Examination of Factors that Influence the Operation Income and Expenditure Balance Difference Rate of 20 Educational Foundation Universities.

The objective of this study is to examine the factors that influence the operation income and expenditure balance ratio of school corporations running university hospitals by multiple regression analysis. 1. We conducted cluster analysis of the financial ratio and classified the school corporations into those running colleges and universities.2. We conducted multiple regression analysis using the operation income and expenditure balance ratio of the colleges as the variables and the Diagnosis Procedure Combination data as the explaining variables.3. The predictive expression was used for multiple regression analysis. 1. The school corporations were divided into those running universities (7), colleges (20) and others. The medical income ratio and the debt ratio were high and the student payment ratio was low in the colleges.2. The numbers of emergency care hospitalizations, operations, radiation therapies, and ambulance conveyances, and the complexity index had a positive influence on the operation income and expenditure balance ratio. On the other hand, the number of general anesthesia procedures, the cover rate index, and the emergency care index had a negative influence.3. The predictive expression was as follows.Operation income and expenditure balance ratio = 0.027 × number of emergency care hospitalizations + 0.005 × number of operations + 0.019 × number of radiation therapies + 0.007 × number of ambulance conveyances - 0.003 × number of general anesthesia procedures + 648.344 × complexity index - 5877.210 × cover rate index - 2746.415 × emergency care index - 38.647Conclusion: In colleges, the number of emergency care hospitalizations, the number of operations, the number of radiation therapies, and the number of ambulance conveyances and the complexity index were factors for gaining ordinary profit.

College Bound or Bound to Fail? Determinants of Indiana’s High School Graduation and College-Going Rates

Educational attainment is increasingly important to Indiana’s workforce and economy. Both high school graduation rate and postsecondary credential attainment must increase in order to meet future workforce demands. This research analyzed the most commonly tested graduation rate independent variables and applied eight of them (academic expenditures, attendance rate, community college attainment, discipline rate, free and reduced lunch, special education, student-teacher ratio, and vocational education) to both Indiana’s high school graduation rates and the college enrollment rates of these graduating seniors at the school corporation level. Data describing the graduating class of 2013 from 283 Indiana public school corporations were gathered from the Indiana Department of Education, Indiana Commission for Higher Education, Indiana Office of Management and Budget, and United States Census Bureau. Using a least squares regression in Microsoft Excel, it was found that the most significant variables for high school graduation were academic expenditures, community college attainment, discipline rate, free and reduced lunch, and vocational education. This is consistent with the current body of knowledge in the field, as much of the variation in high school graduation rates is attributed primarily to socioeconomic, not academic or funding, variables. The most significant variables for the college-going rate were community college attainment, free and reduced lunch, and vocational education. These findings indicate a need for further research on socioeconomic factors impacting specifically high school students’ home environments, student engagement in the classroom and in extracurricular activities, data tracking students from primary school through the workforce, and data at the classroom and building levels.

Coping and survival skills: the role school personnel play regarding support for bullied sexual minority-oriented youth.

Research has shown that bullying has serious health consequences, and sexual minority-oriented youth are disproportionately affected. Sexual minority-oriented youth include lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning (LGBTQ) individuals. This study examined the bullying experiences of sexual minority-oriented youth in a predominantly rural area of a Midwestern state. The purpose of this study was to have bullied youth describe their experiences and to present their perspectives. Using critical qualitative inquiry, 16 in-depth interviews were conducted in-person or online with youth, ages 15-20, who self-identified as having been bullied based on their perceived minority sexual orientation status. The role of supportive school personnel was found to be meaningful, and supportive school personnel were mentioned as assisting with the coping and survival among this group of bullied sexual minority youth. Supportive school personnel are crucial to the coping and survival of these youth. All school personnel need to be aware of the anti-bullying policies in their school corporations. They may then work to strengthen and enforce their policies for the protection of bullied youth.

“Facebook Fired”

The increased use of social media sites like Facebook has had an impact on employees when their behavior on such sites is deemed to be inappropriate by employers. This has led to a phenomenon that the popular press calls “Facebook Fired,” where an employee is fired for personal social media use. Such terminations have significant potential legal consequences. This article examines the current case law related to social media–based terminations within the job type of K-12 public school teachers. We give legal and practical recommendations to teachers who might potentially face such situations. We suggest legislation and give social media policy language recommendations for school corporations. Finally, we call for research examining the perceptions of fairness of such terminations by workers as well as the public at large.

The Teacher Technology Integration Experience: Practice and Reflection in the Classroom

Previous studies indicated that the technology integration practices of teachers in the classroom often did not match their teaching styles. Researchers concluded that this was due, at least partially, to external barriers that prevented teachers from using technology in ways that matched their practiced teaching style. Many of these barriers, such as professional support and access to hardware and software, have been largely diminished over the last twenty years due to an influx of money and strategies for enhancing technology in primary and secondary schools in the United States. This mixed-methods research study was designed to examine the question, “What technology do teachers use and how do they use that technology to facilitate student learning?” K-12 classroom teachers were purposefully selected based on their full-time employment in a public, private, or religious school in a Midwestern state in the United States, supported by the endorsement of a school official. There were 1048 teachers from over 100 school corporations who completed an online survey consisting of six questions about classroom technology tools and professional development involving technology. Survey results suggest that technology integration is pervasive in the classroom with the most often used technology tool identified as PowerPoint. Moreover, teachers identified that training about technology is most effective when it is contextually based in their own classroom. Follow-up interviews were conducted with ten percent (n=111) of the teachers in order to examine the relationship between teachers’ daily classroom use of technology and their pedagogical practices. Results suggest a close relationship; for example, teachers with student-centric technology activities were supported by student-centric pedagogical practices in other areas. Moreover, teachers with strongly student-centered practices tended to exhibit a more pronounced need to create learning opportunities with technology as a base for enhancing 21st century skills in students. Teachers indicated that external barriers do exist that impact technology integration, such as a lack of in-service training, a lack of available technology, and restricted curriculum, but that overcoming internal barriers, including personal investment in technology, attitude towards technology, and peer support, were a bigger indicator of success. Recommendations are made for restructuring professional development on strategies for contextualizing technology integration in the classroom.

Gender Gap Trends on Mathematics Exams Position Girls and Young Women for STEM Careers

Nine years of results on 4.2 million of Indiana's Indiana Statewide Testing for Educational Progress (ISTEP) mathematics (math) exams (grades 3–10) taken after the implementation of No Child Left Behind have been used to determine gender gaps and their associated trends. Sociocultural factors were investigated by comparing math gender gaps and gap trends for (a) state public schools, (b) state nonpublic schools, (c) a low‐performing metropolitan school, and (d) a high‐performing suburban school. To control for changing sociocultural factors, multiregression analyses were conducted to predict grade‐level (3–10) gender gaps and math scale scores using socioeconomic and ethnicity variables. The underrepresentation of females in earning advanced STEM degrees was investigated by determining the gender of the highest performer on the ISTEP math exams in grades 3–10 for each of state's 292 school corporations. Boys' percentages were higher across all grades by about a 2:1 ratio, similar to high‐end results on Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) math exams. Simulations of distributions for d = .27 and variance ratio = 1.13 fitted 2013 college‐bound SAT math empirical data. Results of the analyses of the state's ISTEP math exam data and the 2013 SAT math scores of college‐bound seniors support the arguments that girls and young women possess the abilities to pursue STEM careers that require advanced mathematical skills.

Services publics — Pouvoir du tribunal d'arbitrage d'amender sa propre sentence

A council of arbitration, appointed under the Act respecting Municipal and School Corporations and their Employees, which remained in office after rendering its award with power to hear any dispute arising as to its interpretation but whose authority has been limited by a clause in the agreement annexed to the award and reading as follows: Le Tribunal d'arbitrage n'aura pas juridiction pour rendre une décision incompatible avec les dispositions de cette convention, ni pour changer, modifier ou amender quelque partie que ce soit de cette convention. has the right to interpret its award and to correct a simple clerical error, but not to amend it. In the present instance, under the terms of the award, the employees of the same category as plaintiff were entitled to be paid at the rate of $1.29 per hour for time worked up to 44 hours a week, plus 50% for time worked in excess of 44 hours a week, the whole retroactive to a specified date. It cannot be said that it is only through a clerical error that the award was made retroactive not only as to the rate of pay but also as to the hours of work a week, even if it resulted in hardship for the employer. A tribunal cannot amend its decision any time that it finds that it acted without full information or complete realization of the effect of such dicision An arbitration award is not null because it was made retroactive for 13 months, contrary to the article 12 of the above-mentionned Act which limits the retroactivity to 12 months; but tis retroactivity should be reduced to that period. In amending its award as it did the council acted without jurisdiction and plaintiff was justified in taking action for the amount due to him under the award as originally made, but with the period of retroactivity shortened from 13 to 12 months.

The Impacts of Budget Reductions on Indiana’s Public Schools

In recent years, economic downturn and changes to Indiana’s school funding have resulted in significant financial reductions in General Fund allocations for many of Indiana’s public school corporations. The purposes of this three-year statewide study are to explore the possible impacts of these budget changes on class sizes, teaching position reductions, and student achievement indicators. Methods of data collection include a superintendent’s survey, a compilation of student standardized test scores, and an evaluation of financial records for participating school districts. Currently, year two is complete with 87 school corporations participating in both years of the study. Descriptive statistics reveal sizeable budget cuts across the state, significant reductions in instructional personnel, a rise in average class sizes, and an increase in standardized test scores. This inquiry provides needed information regarding the depth and breadth of school budget cuts, instructional position reductions, and current data regarding average class sizes for Indiana’s public schools.

Indiana Example of Collaboration and Innovation

What do we know about innovation in the social sector that can help policy makers support and take to scale great ideas that make a difference for students? Thanks to a collaboration between government and the private sector, Indiana high schools are being transformed into engaging, project-based learning environments. The launch and scale-up of Indiana's New Tech Network from 2001 to 2010 offer seven key lessons for other states. Lesson #1. Develop a broad vision for change. Key stakeholders in Indiana recognized the critical relationship between education improvement and economic growth. One of the earliest demonstrations of this emerging vision came in 2001 when the University of Indianapolis established the Center for Excellence in Leadership and Learning (CELL), the university's first foray into the K-12 arena, to bring together schools, communities, and businesses in a concerted effort to prepare all Indiana students for success in a global economy. Gov. Mitch Daniels was keenly interested in education reform as an economic growth tool. Rather than mandating change from the top down, the governor and his senior adviser for human capital supported CELL's efforts to identify high school transformation models that would support both education innovation and economic growth. Thus, by the end of 2002, Indiana had established a broad-based vision for a collaborative, public-private approach to education innovation and economic growth. Lesson #2. Anchor the vision to principles. In 2005, Indiana submitted a proposal to the National Governors Association (NGA) to help school corporations develop innovative high school models. As part of the NGA proposal, the state required any school corporation receiving a grant to demonstrate that its proposal was: 1) supported by the entire school community, 2) financially sustainable in the long term, 3) aligned with the community's economic growth strategy, and 4) focused on meeting the requirements of a 21st-century education. These principles, known around the state as nonnegotiables, made clear that participating school communities must own the initiative and that proposals must focus on the critical goals of the effort--to prepare students for the new global economy and to drive economic growth statewide. Lesson #3. Secure public and private financial support. Two important grants laid the groundwork for state and local communities to develop an even broader base of support from the public and private sector. The first was the initial Gates Foundation grant of $11.3 million to develop the Network of Effective Small Schools in Indianapolis (NESSI). The second was a $15 million grant from the Lilly Endowment to establish CELL at the University of Indianapolis. In 2007, NGA awarded Indiana $2 million to help implement new high school models. In that same year, Gates awarded an additional $2.3 million to the Indianapolis Public Schools to continue converting large high schools to small learning communities. Since 2006, the Indianapolis-based Tech-Point Foundation has provided more than $400,000 in financial and in-kind support and leveraged an additional $100,000 from community partners in support of New Tech High @ Arsenal Tech, a low-income, urban school in IPS. Techpoint is a social venture capital organization that supports Indiana organizations focused on helping at-risk youth develop skills for a global, information economy. Finally, in 2010, Lilly provided $20 million to Talent Opportunity Success (TOpS) 2015, an 11-county regional program focused on expanding the talent pipeline to support the growth of high-quality jobs in northeast Indiana. A portion of the funds was designated specifically to launch five STEM-focused New Tech High Schools in northeast Indiana. These schools now represent the largest concentration of New Techs in the country. Lesson #4. …

Through our children's eyes—The public health impact of the vision screening requirements for Indiana school children

Background The vision screening of preschool and school children is a widely accepted procedure to detect vision problems that can interfere with learning. The Indiana General Assembly requires the annual vision screening with the Modified Clinical Technique (MCT) of all children upon their enrollment in either kindergarten or the first grade, with the exception of schools that apply for and receive waivers to conduct only a distance Snellen chart screening. Methods In association with the Indiana State Department of Health, the Indiana University School of Optometry conducted an analysis of statewide school screening data on 36,967 grade 1 children from 139 of the 294 Indiana school corporations that submitted data for the 2000–2001 school year to examine differences in referral rate by screening method, the socioeconomic status of children screened, and academic performance. Results The MCT was used by 125 of the school corporations, and some other technique was used by 14 school corporations. Significant differences were seen when comparing the mean referral rates of school corporations that conduct the MCT against school corporations that do not conduct the MCT ( P = 0.001) and in the rate of referral by median family income of the children screened ( P = 0.050). A median family income of $46,500 was identified as the level at which the income-specific difference in referral rates ceased to be significant ( P = 0.074). In spite of an observed tendency toward a higher referral rate for children who performed below average on the standardized Indiana Statewide Testing for Educational Progress Plus (ISTEP+) exam, results were found to be not significant ( P = 0.116) when comparing the percentage of grade 1 children referred to an eye care provider in 2000–2001 with their percentages of passing both the English/language arts and mathematics components of the 2002–2003 ISTEP+ exam (in grade 3). Conclusion Schools using the highly sensitive and specific MCT identified more visually at-risk children than schools using alternative, less sensitive vision screening techniques, and the percentage of grade 1 children referred to an eye care provider was higher for school corporations with lower median family incomes. Although statistically insignificant, the results indicate that students who fail the vision screening in grade 1 tend to be more at risk for poorer academic performance on standardized testing in grade 3.

Getting Ahead: Current Secondary and Postsecondary Acceleration Options for High-Ability Students in Indiana

Gifted education programs at the secondary level have yet to receive as much attention as those at the primary and elementary levels. The 2007 State of the States Report found that AP courses remain the most common means of addressing the needs of high-ability high school students. This study presents the current state of high-ability programming in Indiana high schools with special attention to dual-credit and IB programs. Survey data were collected on the policies and offerings of 87% of the state's school corporations. The data suggest that even though almost 90% of corporations offer dual-credit courses and 4% offer IB programs, AP courses remain the primary source of high school programming. The data also indicate that 70% of school corporations require students to exhibit high levels of performance in past coursework or on standardized tests to participate in these programs. Implications for such requirements are that they may prevent underachieving high-ability students from gaining access to the coursework from which they would benefit to be successful in an academic setting.

Budgeting on Shifting Sand

THE headlines are daunting. Plunging home values, skyrocketing fuel costs, declining state revenues, and a multitude of other budget worries add up to nightmares for state budget officials and school business directors. Even the most conservative observers will admit that budget cuts in most districts go beyond trimming fat and are cutting deep into the meat. According to Mike Griffith, senior school finance analyst for the Education Commission of the States, each economic slowdown affects different states in different ways. For example, the impact of the current slowdown is less severe in states that rely on mineral extraction taxes or in states with a large agricultural base. In addition, those states that did not experience the boom in the housing market are not being affected as much by the current bust. But states that rely on businesses other than mineral extraction or agriculture--especially those that rely on manufacturing--are already feeling the pinch of the economic downturn. Governors and state legislatures have used a variety of means to try to stave off the impact on districts of reductions in current and future revenues, but looking for efficiencies appears to be one of the more common approaches. Proactive policies can be implemented prior to bad economic times, and reactive policies can be used in response to a downturn. Purchasing cooperatives. A study conducted on behalf of the Leadership for Education Achievement in Delaware Committee found that, if school districts pooled their purchasing power, they could reduce their costs by between 8% and 14%. In 2006 the Rhode Island legislature passed P.L. 298. This legislation directed the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, working with the Department of Administration, to establish a statewide purchasing system for products and services pertaining to public schools. These include telecommunications, wireless services, general insurance products and services, and school transportation for children with special needs. Shared services. While shared services might include purchasing, this type of collaboration can also include management and instruction. Iowa was one of the first states to offer incentives for districts to share services, and the legislature continues to tweak laws to encourage such collaboration. S.F. 447, passed one year ago, reinstated earlier incentives for reorganization and whole-grade sharing, created operational sharing incentives, and mandated a statewide study of efficiencies and sharing. S.F. 447 provides additional funding for districts that share one or more operational functions for at least 20% of the school year in such areas as management, business, human resources, transportation, or operation and maintenance. The additional funding is available to a district for a maximum of five years during the period covering the budget years 2008-09 through 2012-13. Also passed one year ago, Indiana S.B. 526 was an omnibus bill that included provisions related to shared services. Article 42.5 of this bill authorizes school corporations (districts) to take specific actions to reduce noninstructional expenditures and allocate the resulting savings to student instruction and learning. Authorized actions include creating insurance pools with other school corporations, aggregating purchases of natural gas, and consolidating specified purchases. Such shared services can even include arrangements to provide instructional services and management. Educational service centers are required to report annually on the results of their efforts during the preceding school year to help school corporations pool resources. Last September, the Michigan legislature enacted H.B. 4592. This bill requires each intermediate school district to conduct a study of opportunities for its constituent districts to share services with other districts or other units of local government. Among the services that might be shared are transportation, human resources, purchasing, technology support, professional development, accounting, and event management. …

Service-Learning for Graduate Students through a Student-Run Consulting Program

Statistics in the Community (STATCOM) is a student-run statistical consulting program that has been serving its local community since 2001. Directed and staffed by graduate students from Purdue University's Department of Statistics, it provides professional consulting services to governmental and nonprofit groups free of charge. Students work in teams to help community clients address specific problems and needs. Past clients include school corporations, libraries, community assistance programs, and the city of West Lafayette. Participation in STATCOM allows students to apply statistical concepts and classroom material to solve real problems. It also develops skills in leadership, management, and written and oral communication of results to the general public. Though important for any future career in statistics, these skills are not typically emphasized in graduate courses, research, or the on-campus academic consulting service. The university and academic department also benefit through increased interaction and visibility in the local community. STATCOM can serve as a model for integrating service learning into graduate statistical education at other colleges and universities.