Introduction Ascertaining how much money is needed and how it can best be utilized to improve learning is the focus of this unit. Financing education is the single largest expenditure made by all 50 states. Today, there is a growing concern over how much is spent for education, and how well those funds are used to meet the educational goals and standards we discussed in earlier classes. Particularly in the K-12 environment, current efforts to insure “adequate” school funding have moved researchers to look at the link between resources and student outcomes, and to estimate how much is needed to insure that all—or almost all—students are able to meet today’s achievement standards. Institutions of higher education face similar cost pressures as tuition increases have exceeded the rate of inflation for over a decade. Finally, private firms continue to devote large sums of money to education and training programs for their employees. Unit learning goals When you finish this unit you will have learned to: 1. Understand the role of fiscal considerations in the design and implementation of accountability systems, including: a. how states are working to understand what an adequate level of funding for schools should be b. linking funding to student outcomes. 2. Describe why financial accountability is often separated from performance accountability.

Questions to answer before class as you complete your reading assignment: 1. Organizations (business, nonprofit, schools, universities) are guided by a specific set of goals, or mission. What is the relationship between organizational mission, finance, and accountability? 2. Apply the concept of resource adequacy to three different organizational contexts. Discuss how the concept of “adequacy” may be applied differently. Provide examples.