Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

The purpose of this quantitative study was to analyze the statistical relationship between IDEA Part B funding distributions in Tennessee over the last 11 years. School systems throughout the state rely on the federal allocated IDEA Part B funds in order to provide a free appropriate public education for students age 3 to 21. When state and federal funding are not enough to cover the cost of providing FAPE, local education agencies (LEAs) look to their local government for the necessary funding. This study examined the measure of each’s county’s ability to generate tax revenue, known as the county’s fiscal capacity, in comparison to the amount of IDEA Part B funding that is received by each county. This study analyzed the Pearson correlation coefficients across the range of fiscal years from 2014 to 2024. The study found statistical significance in the correlation coefficient as a result of the bivariate correlation for fiscal years 2014 through 2024, (r = 0.205, p = < .001).  The r-value is representative of each individual fiscal year as all years yielded a weak positive correlation between fiscal capacity and IDEA Part B funding per student. The study covered an in-depth analysis comparing each fiscal year to one another to determine whether any fiscal year was significantly different from one another. There were no years compared that yielded results to suggest a significant difference as all p-values were greater than 0.05. Two additional comparisons were utilized to specifically address recent changes in education. Pre-COVID and Post-COVID funding was analyzed using a test for significant difference. Similarly, funding for 2023 and 2024 were analyzed as the Basic Education Program (BEP) funding formula was replaced by the Tennessee Investment in Student Achievement (TISA) funding formula for general education. The funding formula and COVID analysis both yielded no significant difference as p-values were greater than 0.05.

Year manuscript completed

2026

Year degree awarded

2026

Degree Awarded

Doctor of Education

Department

Education

College/School

College of Education & Human Services

Dissertation Committee Chair

Jonathan V. Parrent

Committee Member

Eric Batts

Committee Member

Philip C. Short

Document Type

Dissertation - Murray State Access only

Additional Files
Dissertation_4_24_26_Revised (1).docx (4920 kB)
Revised Dissertation
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