A Tale of Two Court Cases: Analyzing Public Responses to School Finance Decisions in Connecticut

Author

Briana Casey, Trinity College, Hartford ConnecticutFollow

Date of Award

Spring 2017

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Major

Educational Studies and Public Policy and Law

First Advisor

Jack Dougherty

Abstract

Connecticut has long struggled with the structure of school finance at the K-12 level. Over the past 45 years, the states' battles with reform have become even more apparent following two court cases, Horton v. Meskill (1977) and CCJEF v. Rell (2016). My study compares public responses to both case rulings and analyzes what these differentiations signify for state education reformers. The responses I analyzed are from individuals, such as parents, school board members, reform advocates, education lawyers, teachers, school administrators, and students. The findings show that differences in public responses illustrate an increase in the complexity of the cases from 1977 to 2016 and that this change in complexity is not a good sign for education reformers.

Comments

Senior project completed at Trinity College for the degree of Bachelor of Arts in Educational Studies.

Recommended Citation

Casey, Briana, "A Tale of Two Court Cases: Analyzing Public Responses to School Finance Decisions in Connecticut". Senior Theses, Trinity College, Hartford, CT 2017.
Trinity College Digital Repository, https://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/theses/654