School Capital Expenditure Rules and Distribution

We provide descriptive evidence on the level and within-state distribution of school capital expenditures over the past two decades. We relate these to the fiscal institutions governing capital funding across states. Within-state differences in capital expenditures between the highest-and lowest-income school districts fell considerably following the Great Recession. Spending declined in the highest-income districts, while state support for low-income districts remained stable. Suggestive evidence points to the importance of constraints on districts' ability to raise local funding and the structure of state support in explaining these differences and trends over time.

Do Students’ Perceptions of Unsafe Schools and Experiences With Bullying Hinder the Effects of Family and School Social Capital in Deterring Violence?

Prior research establishes that capital investments from both families and schools are imperative for youths’ socialization and development. Yet current research neglects to test if negative perceptions and negative experiences during adolescence may hinder the effectiveness of family and school capital on adolescent and young adult behavioral outcomes. Drawing from ecological systems theory and social capital theory, I examine the influence of youths’ perceptions of schools’ safety, bully victimization, and family and school social capital predicting violence. I use data from multiple waves from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (1997) ( N = 4,130). I find that the bonds between youths and their families and youths and their schools are important agents of social control. However, my findings suggest that being the victim of bullying may influence the process through which bonds to conventional institutions help prevent problem behaviors. This suggests that a theoretical approach that considers investments in youths from multiple contexts and youths’ experiences with victimization may be better suited for predicting adolescent and young adult violence.

Local option sales tax, state capital grants, and disparity of school capital outlays: The case of Georgia

In recent years, the disparity of school capital outlays has received increasing attention as many schools are facing challenges to meet increasing capital needs. With data of Georgia county school districts during FY2003-2008, this study examines how the disparity of school capital outlays is affected by the mix of capital revenues. Using multiple methods including spatial data analysis, quartile analysis, and inequality decomposition, we find that (1) school capital outlays in Georgia counties are negatively associated with the percentage of black population and the poverty rate, (2) state capital grants do not play an equalization role in school capital outlays, and (3) the use of ESPLOST has some equalizing effects on the funding for school facilities, contrary to earlier findings in the literature.