ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the array of resources available to schools; the beliefs and priorities that impact resource allocation decisions; how school leaders can align school resources with teaching and learning; the research on the relationship between school funds and student achievement. In education, resource allocation is the way in which school decision makers divide fiscal and non-fiscal assets between competing needs and spend them for education purposes. The chapter enhances school leaders' credibility as educators and accountability as responsible stewards of public dollars. Their mental models mature when they understand and act on the following conclusions: Money matters in student achievement; Essential education resources include more than dollars, teachers, and textbooks; Targeting resources to learning-oriented activities improves student outcomes and accountability; The schools' environments affect all these variables; and School leaders' "people skills" can be a key resource that leverages student achievement goals from potential to actual.
