The problem is, to determine the correct interpretation of the Texas statutes which govern the relationships between the municipality and the school district.

The purpose of the study was to identify significant predictors for two selected dependent variables, (1) net interest cost and (2) number of bids, for Indiana public school building corporation first mortgage revenue bond issues.All Indiana public school building corporations marketing first mortgage revenue bonds during any calendar year that existing or comparable legal and bond market conditions applied constituted the population of the study.The sample consisted of 131 Indiana public school building corporations which issued bonds during the calendar years, 1970 through 1974. Data were obtained through responses by officials of 113 school corporations to the Bond Issue Data Instrument.Eighteen independent variables, identified from the literature as important for receiving favorable net interest costs and a higher number of bids, were selected. A backward stepwise multiple regression analysis was used to determine the independent variables that served as best predictors for net interest cost. The analysis was repeated substituting number of bids as the dependent variable.The following conclusions were generated from the data analyses:1. National weekly bond average interest cost is the strongest predictor of net interest cost. National bond market declines generally predict lower net interest costs.2. Lower net interest costs can be obtained by minimizing length of bond issue.3. Indebtedness ratio is a strong predictor of net interest cost. Generally, a lower net interest cost can be expected as indebtedness ratio decreases.4. Date of issue is a significant predictor of net interest cost. Generally, the higher number of Julian days, the higher the interest rate. Conclusive evidence identifying any quarter of the year as the best time to market bonds was absent.5. Type of issue, new or refunded, is a strong predictor of number of bids for a given bond issue. Generally, more bids can be expected for new issues.6. National weekly bond average interest cost is a strong predictor of number of bids. Generally, a declining national average indicates a larger number of bids.7. Ratings by more than one rating company cannot be expected to attract more bidders.8. Net interest cost and number of bids are not affected significantly by administrative practices such as employing bond counsel, outside consultants to prepare prospectus, and financial counsel and the amount or kind of advertising of the bond issue.Recommendations for school officials involved in the process of marketing a school bond issue and for further study were as follows:1. School administrators should analyze economic trends likely to affect national weekly bond averages. Such factors include: (1) bond and stock market fluctuations, (2) actions by the United States Treasury and Federal Reserve Board with respect to governmental fiscal and monetary policy, and (3) international balance of payments.2. Because the length of term has been identified as an important predictor of net interest cost consideration should be given to developing an extensive public relations program which emphasizes the advantages of the shorter term bond issue. Where feasible the term should be 20 years or less.3. Because the ratio of gross bonded indebtedness to local assessed valuation has been identified as an important predictor of net interest cost consideration should be given to reducing the existing indebtedness of the school corporation. Where feasible, the debt ratio should not exceed the 20-25 per cent range for favorable interest costs.4. School administrators should assume more responsibility in preparing the prospectus, in the financial planning, and in obtaining the bond rating.5. The study should be replicated every two years to determine if the predictors identified in this study remain consistent with respect to predictability. The data base could be enlarged to include all public school building corporations marketing bonds for the calendar years 1970 through the most recent year data were available.6. A national study should be conducted which could randomly sample school districts throughout the nation, using variables selected from the study, with appropriate adjustments, to determine the strongest national predictor variables of lower net interest cost.7. A study should be conducted which would provide a handbook to assist Indiana school districts in marketing bond issues.

The purpose of this study was to determine the perceived effectiveness of specific advisory committee activities during a school bond proposal and election process. The study began with an extensive review of the literature on the use of advisory committee activities in school districts for the purpose of promoting a school bond issue. This revealed that school officials maintaining a low profile, the presence of a diverse community task force, focusing on YES voters, involving the committee in early planning, focusing on disseminating information, and focusing on benefits to children and the community are all important in the passage of a school bond election. A survey was developed and administered to committee members, school board members and school district administrators in a North Texas school district that had successfully completed a bond election. Survey respondents consistently supported the practices put into place by the studied school district, which closely mirrored the activities espoused in the research. Respondents believed the diversity of the task force and the roles of the committee members to be crucial to the passage of the bond. The only subcategory of questions that drew mixed reviews and positions of support was that of the need for the administration and board to maintain a low profile. Participants in the survey viewed having a diverse community task force, focusing on YES votes, involvement in early planning, focusing on disseminating information, and focusing on benefits to children and the community as being important to the successful passage of the school bond election, with clear dissemination of information being the most important activity of the committee.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Mississippi State University. Department of Instructional Systems, Leadership, and Workforce Development. / Title from title screen. Includes bibliographical references.

This study examined the relationships between core voting bloc movement and success on school referenda elections. Core voting bloc movement was defined as the change in the ratio of voters who voted in contiguous school referenda elections relative to voters who voted in only one election. The research also examined the factors of election timing, campaign strategy, school affiliation, and voter gender, age, and residence.The sample consisted of the majority of all school referenda elections held in a three-county area of west-central Ohio during the period 1988 to 1991. The dependent variable, percent yes vote change, was measured at the precinct level.Findings suggest that the effect of turnout is problematic. The drop off rate of voters when core voting bloc strength is increasing is not a mirror image of the influx rate experienced when core voting bloc strength is diluted. Additional findings suggest that 1) schools will continue to have a difficult time passing school referenda questions, 2) factors influencing core voting bloc movement are similar for females and males, 3) older voters are too heterogeneous in their voting behaviors to be viewed as a single voting bloc, 4) voters who experience a higher incidence of property tax liability tend to oppose school referenda elections, 5) questions placed on the ballot during periods of traditionally large turnout have a higher likelihood of success than those placed during periods of low turnout, 6) low-profile campaign strategies do not increase the likelihood of school referenda election success, and 7) perceptions of school affiliation significantly affect the likelihood of success. This study also found that percent yes vote change was negative for elections held during expansionary times and slightly positive for elections held during recessionary times.None of the factors considered accounted for significant amounts of variance in the dependent variable. / Department of Educational Leadership

This study examined advanced refundings of Indiana school construction bonds from 1993 to 1996. Purposes were to: (a) add to the professional knowledge base about advanced refundings; (b) evaluate the financial consequences on taxpayers; (c) determine benefits as measured by interest rates, terms, and payment amounts; (d) determine whether selected financial conditions and demographic variables impacted refunding outcomes.The population was all instances of advanced refundings by Indiana public school districts in the period studied. Data were collected from the bond transcripts prepared by legal counsels and placed in tabulation forms developed for the project.Primary findings included:(a) Three quarters of the refunding occurred in the first 10 years of the paymentstream; 27% occurred in the first four years.(b) As the size of the issue increased, the cost (as a percentage of the issue)decreased.(c) Mean decrease in interest rate for the refizndings was .023915 or 239 basis points.(d) Net fiscal impact was generally positive, with a mean savings of $224,218. (e) A negative correlation existed between district wealth and annual paymentamount (i.e., districts with high assessed valuations had smaller changes inannual payments).(f) A positive correlation existed between interest rate change and refunding amount (i.e., large issues were more sensitive to slight changes in interest rates).Selected conclusions included:(a) The benefits of refunding diminished with time (i.e., greatest benefits are likely in the first quarter of the payment stream).(b) Some refundings occurred when the decline in basis points was below a standard level used for municipal bonds; this suggests that school officials may engage in refundings for reasons that extend beyond savings (e.g., political benefits).(c) An economy of scale between refunding size and costs supports existing research.(d) Costs for local school district counsel varied considerably, suggesting that no compensation standard was used.(e) Wealthier districts were less interested in lowering annual payments; their pursuit of refunding may have been motivated by flexibility (i.e., shortening the debt life, accessing fiscal resources).(f) Districts with large bond issues benefited from refunding even when the declines in interest rates were slight.Eight recommendations were formalized. / Department of Educational Leadership

The purposes of this study were to 1) compare the characteristics between the elections that were successful and unsuccessful; 2) identify the purpose of the school bond issue (demographic characteristics); 3) identify the financial resources and structure of the school districts (economic characteristics); 4) analyze the public relations and publicity techniques used in the school bond campaign (communications variables); 5) determine the degree of responsibility assumed by individuals and groups for the educational, building, and bond needs of the school districts (group involvement); 6) ascertain personal and professional information about the district superintendent as it related to voter influence in the bond campaign; 7) determine prior bond election experience. The major conclusions were that the trend of large or small eligible voter turnout was inconclusive, urban districts had more difficulty than rural or suburban districts in passing bond issues, and bond issues were passed mainly for new facilities. School districts with large assessed valuation per resident student had better results than others. The newspaper, "general talking it up," speakers, public meetings, and telephone committees were effective means of communication. The superintendent, board of education, faculty, principals, P.T.A., and lay groups assumed the most responsibility in the elections.

School exclusion during adolescence, namely suspension, expulsion, and drop out, has a number of immediate and long-term consequences for youth. Among these consequences are an increased likelihood of engaging in delinquency and risk of incarceration. Recent research has coined this process the “school-to-prison pipeline,” and while substantial evidence portraying the negative effects of school exclusion exists, much of this evidence overlooks important antecedents to exclusionary school punishment. Employing a developmental life course (DLC) framework, this dissertation applies a social control model across adolescence to evaluate how youths’ bonds to school influence school misbehavior and delinquency and contribute to suspension, expulsion, and drop out. It also expands on prior research that considers the consequences of school exclusion by evaluating this experience’s effects on employment, postsecondary education, and romantic relationships as youth transition into young adulthood, and considers how these age-graded sources of social control contribute to continued offending and incarceration. Importantly, using a diverse sample of 1,216 first-time juvenile offenders, this dissertation explores how these processes differ across race/ethnicity through multi-group structural equation modeling. Findings reveal partial support for the application of a social control model to the school-to-prison pipeline. Bonds formed to mothers in early adolescence are shown to positively influence the formation of a strong bond to school. Strong school bonds, in turn, reduce the likelihood that youth engage in school misbehavior and delinquency. Bonds to school are indirectly related to school exclusion and dropout through school misbehavior and delinquency. These negative events—school exclusion and dropout—increase the likelihood that youth offend in young adulthood, with dropout also increasing the risk of incarceration. While support for prosocial bonds in young adulthood acting as turning points is limited, individuals who are employed are less likely to experience incarceration. The multigroup model indicates that these relationships do not vary across race. Examining the school-to-prison pipeline under a unified lens allows for multiple intervention points. Implications for policy are discussed at each stage of the model and include targeting youths’ relationships with parents early in adolescence, engaging youth in school to promote strong bonds and discourage school misbehavior and delinquency, and implementing strategies to reengage youth who are excluded from or drop out of school. / Criminal Justice

When the polls close and the ballots are counted, the best sound is the roar of ecstatic cheering from delighted but exhausted campaign committee members. A bond campaign takes an inordinate amount of work, but the results are worth the effort when the campaign is managed in a systematic way. Districts can be successful bond recipients when they effectively market their schools to gain the support of their constituents. Public schools across the U.S. are in dire need of major repairs, remodeling, and rebuilding to meet the educational needs of students. Unfortunately, passing a school bond election is entrusted to school superintendents and other district leaders, who are often inexperienced and ill-prepared and have neither the time nor inclination to focus on tasks that take them far from their primary purpose of teaching and learning. Attaining voter support in a school bond election requires a thorough understanding of school and community issues. The literature review focuses on communication theory and research to garner support of school district's internal and external stakeholders. Communication is instrumental in passage of a construction bond election. This dissertation is theoretically grounded in problem-based learning and the research and development process. The tested product is a handbook for superintendents or other district-level administrators on strategies and practices that assist in passing a construction bond election. In the Preliminary and Main field tests, superintendents and other district leaders used the handbook in a workshop. Survey results provided summative data to assess the efficacy of the handbook and the workshop. Formative results also provided rich information to improve and revise the handbook and workshop.

California Schools have experienced an unprecedented growth during the past several years. Enrollments in many school districts within the state have more than doubled since the end of World War II. It took California ninety years to enroll its first million children in school in 1940. It took only thirteen years to enroll the second million in 1953. It will take only an estimated five years to enroll the third million by 1958.1 Practically every California school system, therefore, is faced with the continuing problem of providing more classrooms to house these new pupils. To provide funds for additional schools, boards of education must submit bond issues to the vote of the electorate. Passage of such bond issues in California requires a two-thirds favorable vote. The purpose of this study was to determine what procedures have been followed by selected larger California school districts in planning and conducting school bond campaigns.