Special Report
Education Funding

Holding Steady in a Stiff Wind

By The Editors — January 05, 2011 4 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Quality Counts 2011, the 15th edition of this annual report produced through the joint efforts of the Education Week newsroom and the Editorial Projects in Education Research Center, arrives at a time of continued fiscal anxiety and education policy ferment in the wake of what has been widely described as the “Great Recession” of 2007-09. Economists have officially declared the national downturn to be over. But concerns persist about the recovery’s pace and stability even as states and school districts seek to rebuild ravaged budgets—and as they cope with an end to massive one-time federal aid to education under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the economic-stimulus measure passed two years ago.

In keeping with the long-standing dual mission of Quality Counts, the report leverages the EPE Research Center’s detailed, state-level data collection and analysis to inform this year’s special theme: education and the economy. The research and the accompanying journalism probe the impact of the recession on the nation’s schools in policy, personnel, and programs, and outline the challenges—and opportunities for innovation—in store for state and local officials as they move forward.

Research Highlights

As with previous reports, this year’s publication draws deeply on the EPE Research Center’s 50-state policy survey and original data analysis to provide a comprehensive, state-by-state evaluation that encompasses dozens of key education policy and achievement indicators. This information is the backbone of Quality Counts’ report card on policy and performance. In addition, the center conducted a special survey to assess the state of public education finances, and explore some of the state-level responses to the recession in such crucial areas as personnel and operational flexibility for districts. This data-driven analysis, complemented by the reporting of Education Week staff writers, offers a detailed portrait of how states and districts are navigating the postrecession environment while seeking to maintain the momentum of standards-based school reform.

Among the highlights from the research center’s special, 50-state inquiry into the recession’s impact: While states overall launched few large-scale education policy changes as a result of the economic crisis, many have initiated modest policy changes offering local school systems greater flexibility to meet those economic challenges. Changes include loosening the reins on the eligible uses of education aid previously reserved for specific programs or student populations, an approach taken by 21 states since the recession began; and, in the case of 10 states, allowing greater flexibility on the length of the school year, week, or day.

State-by-State Grading

As in previous years, Quality Counts provides fresh results for crucial policy-and-performance areas that constitute the annual State of the States review.

This year’s report includes updated letter grades for the states and the nation overall in four specific categories: the Chance-for-Success Index, devised by the EPE Research Center to give perspective on the link between education and beneficial outcomes from early childhood to adulthood; the K-12 Achievement Index, which weighs how well a state’s students perform on 18 different criteria; school finance, capturing spending patterns and how equitably those dollars are distributed; and policies to facilitate transitions and alignment across various segments of the educational pipeline.

In addition, the states and the nation each receive an overall, summative grade that reflects the most recently available information from the six categories that make up the full Quality Counts policy-and-performance framework. They include the four updated categories, as well as results for the teaching profession and the standards, assessments, and accountability sections that are drawn from last year’s report.

Maryland—for the third year in a row—ranks first when all categories are taken into account, earning the nation’s highest grade, a B-plus. It is followed by Massachusetts and New York, each of which received a B. In contrast, the District of Columbia, Nebraska, and South Dakota received grades of D-plus, with a majority of states earning a C or C-plus. The nation as a whole earned a C, the same grade as last year.

Room for Improvement

In the two categories that provide the broadest perspective on both the performance of Americas schools and the state of education more generally, this years results offer a less-than-sanguine national portrait. On the K-12 Achievement Index, the average state earned a D-plus, little changed since grades for that category were last issued in 2008. On the Chance-for-Success Index, the nation as a whole earned a C-plus. The latter category, in particular, may offer some clues for policymakers: As in previous years, the results show that the states rankings on Chance-for-Success strongly correlate with factors associated with participation and performance in formal schooling among their residents.

Related Tags:

In March 2024, Education Week announced the end of the Quality Counts report after 25 years of serving as a comprehensive K-12 education scorecard. In response to new challenges and a shifting landscape, we are refocusing our efforts on research and analysis to better serve the K-12 community. For more information, please go here for the full context or learn more about the EdWeek Research Center.

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Reading & Literacy Webinar
The Future of the Science of Reading
Join us for a discussion on the future of the Science of Reading and how to support every student’s path to literacy.
Content provided by HMH
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
College & Workforce Readiness Webinar
From Classrooms to Careers: How Schools and Districts Can Prepare Students for a Changing Workforce
Real careers start in school. Learn how Alton High built student-centered, job-aligned pathways.
Content provided by TNTP
Student Well-Being Live Online Discussion A Seat at the Table: The Power of Emotion Regulation to Drive K-12 Academic Performance and Wellbeing
Wish you could handle emotions better? Learn practical strategies with researcher Marc Brackett and host Peter DeWitt.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Education Funding Republicans Urge Trump to Release $6.8 Billion in School Funding He's Held Back
The funds that were supposed to go out July 1 pay for teacher training, English learner services, after-school programs, and more.
4 min read
Sen. Susan Collins, R,Maine, with Sens. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., left, and Shelly Moore Capito, R-W.Va., center, question Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., during a Senate Committee on Appropriations subcommittee hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2026 for the Department of Health and Human Services, on Capitol Hill, May 20, 2025, in Washington.
Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, (right) and Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., (center) are shown during a Senate subcommittee hearing on May 20, 2025, in Washington. They're among 10 Republican senators who have signed a letter urging the Trump administration to release $6.8 billion in federal education funds it's withheld from states. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., (left) was among 32 Democratic senators to sign a letter urging the same.
Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP
Education Funding Two Dozen States Sue Trump Over $6.8 Billion School Funding Freeze
The Trump administration violated the U.S. Constitution when it withheld billions from schools in early July, the lawsuit alleges.
7 min read
President Donald Trump speaks at an event to promote his domestic policy and budget agenda in the East Room of the White House on June 26, 2025, in Washington.
President Donald Trump speaks at an event to promote his domestic policy and budget agenda in the East Room of the White House on June 26, 2025, in Washington. Two dozen states have sued the president and others in his administration over its withholding of $6.8 billion in education funds that were supposed to go out to states on July 1.
Jose Luis Magana/AP
Education Funding Opinion Trump's Cuts to Schools Will Hit Hard. But Leaders Need More Than Just Money
The federal funding chaos highlights a perennial dynamic in public schools.
Joshua P. Starr
5 min read
Concept of the remedy for melancholy and happiness, with a painter who transforms a brick wall into a sunny sky.
iStock/Getty
Education Funding Who Will Bear the Brunt of Trump's Hold on $6.8 Billion in School Funds?
The sudden absence of expected federal funds has already cost some educators their jobs.
12 min read
Image of a $100 dollar bill that is cut into blocks for distribution.
E+/Getty