Anna Lukemeyer

Exploring how judges play an important role in developing school funding policies, Lukemeyer examines the role of policy issues in legal decision-making on school finance suits.

Lukemeyer describes four policy important to the effectiveness of school finance reforms: 1) the existence of multiple, sometimes inconsistent, definitions of school finance equity; 2) the uncertain relationship between school spending levels and student outcomes; 3) the role of differences in resource costs and student characteristics in designing an equitable funding system; 4) the role of voter preferences in determining school funding levels. Her book examines the role of each of these issues (and associated expert knowledge) in judicial reasoning and in decisions for or against plaintiffs.

Table of Contents

1. Social and Legal Background
2. Policy Issues as Defined by Education Finance Scholars
3. Judicial Definitions of Equity and Case Outcomes: Research Questions and Methods
4. Judicial Definitions of Equity and Case Outcomes: Findings
5. Judicial Definitions of Equity and Treatment of Key Issues: Findings and Conclusions
6. Exploring the Impact of Different Judicial Choices Using Simulations
7. School Finance Equity Issues: Summary and Conclusions

References
Appendices
Index