The End of School Finance as We Know It

A Brief History, and a New Direction

By Paul T. Hill & Marguerite Roza

Since the late 1960s, school finance has been a field unto itself. But the past may give clues to a much different future.

After Arthur E. Wise, in his influential 1968 book, Rich Schools, Poor Schools , suggested that unequal school funding could be interpreted as a denial of children’s equal-protection rights, the Ford Foundation invested millions in a research and litigation initiative. Scholars documented inequalities in spending, particularly between rich and poor districts in the same state, and lawyers filed suits in 45 states seeking changes in the states’ funding policies.

It was...