EDU 535: School Finance and the Economics of Education

This course will examine the principles of developing and managing a school budget and its relationship to student learning, standardized testing and data analysis, school facilities and the school/parent community. Strategies for making short and long-range finance decisions are explored. Topics include: establishing a context for understanding school finance policy, the operation of the school as it relates to the budgeting of resources, management of plant facilities, and design of the organization’s structure within the building, the school budget process, and rethinking school finance to attain high standards. Throughout the course, the skill of being a reflective practitioner will be emphasized through hands-on activities and computer simulation