Date of Graduation

5-2021

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Economics

Advisor/Mentor

Brownback, Andy

Committee Member/Reader

Velliquette, Anne

Committee Member/Second Reader

Muhammad, Rahman

Abstract

Throughout the state of Arkansas, there are grave disparities in education resources apparent in specific school districts and at a state level. The Arkansas Department of Education, formerly titled the State Department of Education, was established in 1931 by Act 169 in the Arkansas General Assembly. Since then, the department has gone under multiple reforms and expansions. From desegregation to the Clinton administration’s improvements in early childhood education, Arkansas has had a tumultuous past in terms of public education and has consistently been ranked in the bottom twentieth percentile of the nation’s school systems. The purpose of this paper is to examine the disparities that are present in Arkansas schools by analyzing statistics from the Arkansas Department of Education in order to create a clear understanding of the structures in place which directly affect the quality of student’s education. With this clear understanding, policy recommendations can be made to improve the quality of public education in Arkansas.

Keywords

Education; Resource; Disparities; Arkansas; Public School

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