ROI has become shorthand for fiscal responsibility—an expectation that every dollar spent should produce measurable gains. In an era of tightening budgets, declining enrollment, and rising student needs, that pressure makes sense. In this blog, SFF introduces a more appropriate frame: Relevant Return on Resources (R3).

ROI has become shorthand for fiscal responsibility—an expectation that every dollar spent should produce measurable gains. In an era of tightening budgets, declining enrollment, and rising student needs, that pressure makes sense. In this blog, SFF introduces a more appropriate frame: Relevant Return on Resources (R3).

ROI has become shorthand for fiscal responsibility—an expectation that every dollar spent should produce measurable gains. In an era of tightening budgets, declining enrollment, and rising student needs, that pressure makes sense. In this blog, SFF introduces a more appropriate frame: Relevant Return on Resources (R3).

This blog post takes a deep dive into the importance of education finance data by describing education finance data sources, how it is collected, national data delays, and how data is used to supports decisions on the district, state, and national levels.

Register for our webinar on August 20! Join us for a practical conversation about how districts can align federal, state, and local funding streams to better support their priorities.

In this podcast, AIR Senior Researcher Amanda Danks discusses the intricacies of education data collection and the causes of data delays in education with Ph.D. Stephen Cornman.

In this podcast, AIR senior researcher Amanda Danks discusses teacher compensation with director of the Center for Analysis of Longitudinal Data in Education Research, Dr. Dan Goldhaber.

In this podcast, AIR Senior Researcher Amanda Danks and AIR Principal Researcher Drew Atchinson discusses the two common ways districts count students, i.e. through enrollment and attendance.

Register for our webinar on July 30! Join us for a conversation about how districts can use data to better understand whether resources are supporting intended outcomes.

Register for our webinar on July 16! Join us for a conversation about how states are responding to declining enrollment in rural districts—and what those shifts mean for funding, staffing, and long-term sustainability.

This Technical Appendix shows the source for each data element included on the SFF Funding and Finance Data Map.

This blog highlights lessons from Tennessee and Maryland on how strong state–district partnerships, clear communication, operational planning, and sustained collaboration are essential to successfully implementing education finance policy change.

This blog explains why school funding comparisons should account for differences in local purchasing power and how the SFF Data Map uses CWIFT-adjusted dollars to make education spending comparisons across states and districts more meaningful.

This blog introduces new SFF Center resources, including the interactive State Funding and Finance Data Map and the Education Finance 101 Blog Series, that organize education funding data and insights to help users better understand how funding systems work across states.

Join us for a hands-on look at the Strategic Funding and Finance Center’s Funding and Finance Data Map, an interactive tool designed to make school finance more visible and understandable.

In this podcast, AIR Senior Researchers Amanda Danks, Lynn Holdheide, and Cheryl Krohn break down Alternative Teaching Pathways.

Watch our webinar recording discussing ways to strengthen state funding approaches to best support multilingual learners.

This blog post provides access to a podcast with ASBO International that breaks down school finances.

This blog post provides access to a resource that breaks down the real costs behind Early Childhood Education programs and provides researched approaches to conducting these cost studies.

This blog post breaks down six of the biggest challenges our education system faces when it comes to education finance. Follow along to learn more about the impact of "The Six Es".

This blog takes the perspectives of two highly experienced education funding administrators and provides insights behind their strategies for handling federal funding.

This page provides an glossary of key terms related to strategic funding and finance, offering clear definitions to help education leaders better understand and apply funding concepts in decision-making.

This page provides two resources that guide users on aligning state and local policies and planning in the education and workforce sectors.

This blog post is a part of the Education Finance 101 Series. It discusses the intricacies behind costs and budgeting in the education sector by breaking down how states assess the actual cost of resources.

The Strategic Funding and Finance Center's commitment is to help education leaders use every dollar more strategically in service of students. Learn more about SFF's mission from our Director and Deputy Director here.

This blog explains three commonly used funding models that states use to allocate funds and resources.

This blog describes how states use different strategies to provide funding for student needs beyond base formulas.

This blog post is the introduction to SFF's Education Finance 101 Series, breaking down the importance of education funding and the intentions behind this series.

This webinar provides insights on how education leaders from Maryland and Tennessee manage education finance policy across systems and making sustainable policy changes.