At the end of last year Pepperdine’s School of Public Policy’s Davenport Institute for Public Engagement and Civic Leadership has been in the news for the release of a report on the current state of education spending in California.
The project is an expansion of an earlier study published in June 2010 entitled “An Analysis of K-12 Education Expenditures in California: FY 2003-04 to FY 2008-09.” The most recent report expands on the 52 school districts covered in the first report to include all the California school districts that have the necessary financial expenditure data available. It included 950 of approximately 1000 K-12 school districts in California.
Written by Dr. Steven Frates Dr. Michael Shires and Ian Rudge the report has been featured in newspapers across the state of California.
According to the study education budgets rose by 22 percent from fiscal years 2003-2004 and 2008-2009. However during the same period of time classroom spending declined from 59 percent of the budget to 57.8. Alongside this administrator salaries are increasing at a greater rate than those of teachers and a smaller percentage of total expenditure is being allocated to teachers. Schools are also increasing spending faster than the economy is growing.
Pepperdine has received mixed criticism over the report. “There is different press coverage on the report. It is part of the business Frates commented.
Some of the negative criticisms assert that the report does not consider money that indirectly helps classrooms.
As to the nature of the report, Frates, the director of research at the Davenport Institute, said this project was very much in line with previous work he had done at the Rose Institute at Claremont McKenna College.
Funded by the Small Business Action Committee and the California Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation, Frates hopes that a study of this kind will serve to increase the prestige an already accomplished School of Public Policy.
In regards to future projects, Frates reported that there’s a lot of research to cover in California. It’s a matter of funding.”
The report is one example of many successes the School of Public Policy has had lately.
The Office of the Provost at Pepperdine University has awarded grants to two School of Public policy professors. Dr. Luisa Blanco was awarded $1500 for her work which focuses on the role of institutions in the development of Latin American economies.
James Prieger associate professor of economics was awarded $2800 for his project “Broadband in the US: Who are the Unserved and How Important are Prices?” The project focuses on the public policy related to the availability and usage of broadband Internet to all citizens of the US.
Hans Zeiger a 2009 graduate was elected as a Washington state representative. New Mexico Governor-Elect Susan Martinez appointed Hanna Skander (MPP ’00) as the state secretary of education. Skander served as commissioner of education in Florida from 2005 to 2007 and in 2007 was named a School of Public Policy distinguished alumna.
The School of Public Policy will be hosting a conference next month entitled “A Place in the World: Geography Identity and Civic Engagement in Modern America which will take place from March 11-12.