Return on investment: Identifying K-12 funding inequities to improve postsecondary achievement and affordability for marginalized students

<p>The research investigates persistent inequities in K-12 school funding in Michigan, emphasizingthe correlation between funding disparities and the socioeconomic status of communities. The study highlights how historically segregated communities of color face significant challenges in securing equitable funding compared to predominantly White communities, perpetuating racial inequalities in educational resources. The study explores the impact of funding on key factors affecting student achievement, such as teacher quality, class size, and socio-emotional support, while analyzing the role of parental education attainment in perpetuating intergenerational inequality. Using structural equation modeling, the findings reveal that socioeconomic status significantly influences educational outcomes and per pupil funding has a small to moderate influence depending on demographic group. The findings underscore the need for legislatures to pass progressive funding models and comprehensive policies to enhance equity and support marginalized students in achieving long-term educational success. The study promotes how adequate funding can promote intergenerational economic mobility and improved academic success for all students. The findings also underscore the need for K-12 leaders to revise their policies and practices to position students for success in affording a postsecondary education. The study examines the impact of human resource shortages on students’ ability to receive the K-12 experience necessary to afford, enroll in, persist at, and graduate from a four-year institution of higher education (IHE). The study reinforces the need for 4-year IHE’s to support students of color to succeed in rigorous coursework specific to their degree and beyond the typical first two years of general education courses.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Level thesis:degree_level

Open Access Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Leadership and Counseling

Year dc:date.available

2024

Author dc:creator

• Woodside, Austin

Contributors dc:contributor

• Davis Clement, PhD
• Phillip Caldwell II, PhD
• Robert Carpenter, PhD

• Achievement
• Affordability
• Funding
• Postsecondary
• School
• Students
• Educational Leadership

Repository record dc:identifier

https://commons.emich.edu/theses/1264

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:commons.emich.edu:theses-2624