This dissertation examines the high school dropout problem in Florida using 1980 Census data. The principal advantage of working with Census data is that a microeconomic approach to the dropout question is facilitated by the large number of observations available in the five percent sample. This technique overcomes many of the disadvantages associated with alternative aggregate models. There are three key elements which play a role in the student's dropout calculus: (a) background variables, (b) schooling inputs, and (c) opportunity cost considerations. / U.S. Census data was analyzed using a series of logistic regressions. The results indicated that parental education, the marital status of the parent, marriage before graduation, and early child bearing are the primary determinants of the dropout rate. These findings are consistent with the supporting literature. The data also indicate that minorities are less likely to drop out than their Caucasian counterparts, ceteris paribus. Also significant within the minority community are the adolescent's ability to speak English and living in a household engaged in migrant work. / The results pertaining to schooling inputs and opportunity cost were less harmonious than the results for the background variables. Expenditures per pupil and the student-teacher ratio are the only schooling variables which are consistently significant. The opportunity cost variables are best understood by viewing males and females separately. For males, a farming background and a lower local unemployment rate tend to increase the dropout rate. For females, an increase in the availability of jobs suitable to teens tends to increase the dropout rate. / The Florida dropout model was tested on five additional states (Georgia, Arizona, Louisiana, Connecticut, and Minnesota) and explains 62% of the variation in the dropout rates of these states. The model predicts best for females who live in states with high dropout rates. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 52-05, Section: A, page: 1832. / Major Professor: James D. Gwartney. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1991.

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<p> Growth modeling in education has focused on student characteristics in multilevel growth accountability models and has rarely included financial variables. In this dissertation, relations of several demographic and financial characteristics of Oregon school districts to the reading and mathematics growth of students receiving special education services in Grades 3-8 were explored after accounting for student level demographic characteristics. Previous research indicated that three variables were potentially related to student growth: district level aggregated student demographics, district geography (e.g., location in a remote area), and district funding. Three sources of data were used to investigate these relationships: institutional data reported by the Oregon Department of Education, the Common Core of Data gathered by the National Center for Education Statistics, and Oregon Assessment of Knowledge and Skills test data collected as part of the National Center on Assessment and Accountability in Special Education. </p><p> Multi-level models of student growth across Grades 3-8 were constructed for reading and mathematics, with time (level-1) nested within students (level-2) and districts (level-3). Results demonstrated that although student-level demographic factors account for the majority of meaningful differences in student growth, both district demographic characteristics and financial investment in students were related to growth for students who received special education services.</p>

This research questions two fundamental assumptions of established educational policies designed to promote gender equity. First, that the external labor market is the principal predictor of disciplinary salaries when all other factors are controlled, and second, that integration of women into these marketable disciplines will result in pay equity. This study describes the national trends in female participation and gender redistribution in academic disciplines, evaluates student gender composition as a proxy for "feminization" of academic fields, and examines the value of comparable worth and labor market variables in tandem to predict faculty salary increases by discipline. Correlation, chi-square and logit analyses were performed to determine the direction of gender redistribution among disciplines over time, and to address the relationship between the level of disciplinary gender composition change and the level of disciplinary salary change. The annual percentage change (logged) in full-time assistant professor salary by discipline and institution was regressed on the proportion of female students within disciplines, the distribution of male students among disciplines, NRC rank, and prior year salary (logged). Gender redistribution among disciplines is not arbitrary and changes in gender composition can predict the level of disciplinary salary increases. The full regression model was significant. The variables for female participation tended to have a significant negative influence, while the variables for male participation tended to have a significant positive influence on changes in faculty salary.

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My dissertation consists of three chapters that focus on the economics of education. In particular I look at public school financing, gender discrimination in advising, and the effectiveness of out-of-school-time programs for disadvantaged schools. The first chapter analyzes the effect of an extremely large funding shock on Wyoming public schools in the 2006-07 school year. The effect of the shock is estimated on high school graduation rates and NAEP math and reading scores via synthetic control methods. The funding shock in Wyoming, which was the largest increase in education expenditure for any state in the nation from 1998-2008, is shown to have been largely unsuccessful in raising graduation rates and test scores. The second chapter uses a field experiment to analyze college advising differentials by student and advisor gender. Advisors assess the expected performance of students in both mathematics and English and recommend one of the two subjects to the student. Surveys are randomly assigned, and the experiment is designed such that student gender is the treatment. Advisors are found to discount the ability of female students relative to males in both mathematics and English. Additionally, male advisors recommend mathematics with much greater likelihood than do female advisors. The final chapter analyzes the effect of the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program on disadvantaged schools. Using a regression discontinuity design, it is found that 21CCLC has a more positive effect on middle schoolers than on elementary school students, but that results vary widely depending on the cohort and grade level. The program seems to have potential for significant improvement in school outcomes, but also has potential to have negative effects. There is some evidence from 2007-2011 that the program is improving over time.

"Contrasting Portraits" is the history of Rodriguez, the Texas school finance case from 1968 to 1973. The thesis places the case within three contexts: Texas education, Mexican-American rights, and equal protection. Rodriguez concluded one stream of Supreme Court equal protection analysis and launched another interpretation, reflective of societal change. An analysis of the Rodriguez briefs and court opinions revealed two conflicting ideals: equality and liberty. School finance cases pit constituencies representing these ideals against each other: advocates of equal educational opportunity and advocates of local control, each searching to provide the best education for America's children. The study, which includes a chronology chart of Rodriguez from 1968 to 1995, suggests that school finance reformers should continue to search for new, simple, moderate standards that will both foster equality and liberty and still strengthen all schools.

<p>The role of the chief financial officer (CFO) is critical to the effective leadership of U.S. four-year public colleges and universities. Self-awareness and the capacity to view situations simultaneously in multiple ways and from different perspectives are essential elements of CFO effectiveness and success in the higher education environment. </p><p> The relationship of the chief financial officer and the chief academic officer (CAO) is a key component of effective higher education leadership and a critical element of CFO success. Information about the self-perceptions of chief financial officers and perceptions of chief financial officers by chief academic officers will: (1) enhance CFO self-awareness and effectiveness, (2) broaden their ability to apply multi-frame thinking and formulate adaptive approaches, and (3) deepen their understanding of and appreciation for the CFO/CAO relationship. </p><p> The purpose of this study was to examine the predominant leadership orientations of CFOs at U.S. four-year public colleges and universities as self-perceived and as perceived by CAOs. </p><p> The study employed survey methodology to gather information about CFOs&rsquo; self-perception of their leadership orientations and the perception of CFOs&rsquo; leadership orientations by CAOs. Information on demographic characteristics was gathered to determine if they explained variations in the responses. The Bolman and Deal Leadership Orientation Questionnaires for SELF and OTHERS were employed to gather the information. </p><p> Three general findings emerged from the study. First, both CFOs and their CAO colleagues perceive that CFOs employ the structural frame as their predominant leadership orientation. Second, the demographic characteristics considered did not account for any significant difference in the responses received from either group. Third, there is no significant difference in how CFOs and CAOs perceive the CFO&rsquo;s predominant leadership orientation, the structural frame. </p>

<p> Debt for public colleges and universities has been increasing while financial resources, which provide the support to repay debt, have been declining. As debt increases in proportion to assets, the risk profile of a college or university increases. This study examined the relationships between financial variables and institutional characteristics that relate to long-term debt and leverage of U.S. four-year public colleges and universities during a period of economic downturn. Understanding these relationships is needed to determine factors that enable or constrain public higher education's ability to borrow funds to meet organizational goals. In addition, this study also explored long-term debt and leverage trends categorized by Carnegie classification and geographic region from 2005 to 2009. </p><p> The data for the study were obtained from IPEDS. Descriptive statistics, ANOVA, and OLS regression were used to analyze the data. The findings showed that both long-term debt and leverage of public institutions had increased from 2005 to 2009. However, leverage increased at a slower pace, which indicated that public universities were able to use existing assets to offset the increase in liabilities associated with the additional long-term debt. This study also found that differences existed in long-term debt by Carnegie classification. Doctoral/Research institutions had more long-term debt than Master's institutions, and Master's institutions had more long-term debt than Baccalaureate institutions. Although Master's institutions did not have the greatest amount of long-term debt, they had greater amounts of leverage than Doctoral/Research and Baccalaureate institutions in all fiscal years. Additionally, Master's and Doctoral/Research institutions located in the Northeast had mean leverage in all five years that exceeded recommended thresholds. </p><p> The variable with the strongest relationship with long-term debt was property, plant, and equipment. Approximately 65.9% of the variance in long-term debt was explained by property, plant, and equipment. In comparison, the leverage model showed that geographic regions had the strongest relationship with leverage. Collectively, the West, Midwest, and Southeast regions accounted for 27.1% of the variance in leverage. The detailed results of the findings, conclusions, and recommendations are provided at the end of the study.</p>

<p> Fluctuations within the global economy have the capacity to affect the revenue streams of institutions of higher education, often necessitating discussions of financially-motivated mission shift within the context of governing boards. This study investigated the manner in which institutional cultural attitudes of governing board members differ when discussing such issues at religious institutions of higher education. These differences were studied within the unique context of the challenges raised by the interplay between organizational change and a culture defined, in part, by doctrinal formulations. Governing board members at five religious institutions of higher education were interviewed in a qualitative comparative case study regarding the board decision-making process. Structured interviews utilized the critical incident technique and the framework of resource dependence theory. The study revealed critical differences in the manner in which board members engaged the decision-making process in each of the aspects of resource dependence theory, as well as in the areas of institutional mission and finance. The local societal context of each institution was revealed to be a critical component in the board decision-making process relative to institutional mission, institutional finance, and financially-motivated mission shift.</p>