No Spending without Representation: School Boards and the Racial Gap in Education Finance

Brett Fischer

American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, 2023, vol. 15, issue 2, 198-235

Abstract: This paper provides causal evidence that greater minority representation on school boards translates into greater investment in minority students. Focusing on California school boards, I instrument for minority (specifically, Hispanic) representation using random ballot ordering and leverage new data from a statewide capital investment program to capture intradistrict resource allocations. I show that Hispanic board members invest the marginal dollar in high-Hispanic schools within their districts. High-Hispanic schools also exhibit gains in student achievement and decreased teacher turnover. I conclude that enhancing minority representation on school boards could help combat long-standing disparities in education.

JEL-codes: H75 I21 I22 I24 J15 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1257/pol.20200475

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