League of Women Voters of Nebraska

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Materials & Sources

Welcome to Schools 101! As a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to cultivating an informed electorate, we have put together some of the basic facts about K-12 education in Nebraska. Below you will find videos, links and resources that give an overview of K-12 education in Nebraska as well as more detailed information about four topics: who attends our schools (students); who works in our schools (teachers, staff and administrators); what pays for our schools (funding); and what guides our schools (curriculum).

Center on Education Policy. (2020). History and evolution of public education in the US. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED606970.pdf  

Center on Education Policy. (2020). For the common good: Recommitting to public education in a time of crisis. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED606967.pdf

Cornman, S.Q., Phillips, J.J., Howell, M.R., and Zhou, L. (2022). Revenues and expenditures for public elementary and secondary education: FY 20 (NCES 2022-301). U.S. Department of Education. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. Retrieved [date] from https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch

Hanson, M. (2021, December 27). Average cost of private school, EducationData.org, https://educationdata.org/average-cost-of-private-school 

Kruska, R. (2008). Financial models in Catholic education. LMU/LLS Theses and Dissertations (258). https://digitalcommons.lmu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1200&context=etd 

Lincoln Public Schools. (2022). 2021-2022 Budget information and financial history. https://drive.google.com/file/d/19n8NO5uXs8PgafMwQEzRoMoYbdBapxt5/view  

National Center for Educational Statistics (2021). Characteristics of private schools in the United States: Results from the 2019-20 Private School Universe Survey. https://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2021061  

National Center for Education Statistics. (2022). Public School Expenditures. Condition of Education. U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences. https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cmb.  

Nebraska Department of Education. (2021). Nebraska public schools state snapshot. [Dashboard]. Retrieved from https://nep.education.ne.gov/statedata.html 

Nebraska Department of Education. (2021). Statistics and facts about Nebraska schools 2020-2021. https://cdn.education.ne.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Statsfacts_20202021-for-pdf.pdf 

Nebraska Department of Education. (2021). Nebraska education profile. Retrieved from https://nep.education.ne.gov//State?DataYears=20192020

Nebraska Department of Education, Exempt School Program Offices (2021). A report on participants in Nebraska exempt schools 2019/20 school year. https://cdn.education.ne.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/1920_ESP_Annual_Report.pdf 

Nebraska Department of Education School Finance & Organization Services. (2021, April 26). Cost per pupil by average daily attendance (ADA) and by average daily membership (ADM). https://cdn.education.ne.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/1920AFR_PPC.pdf 

National Education Association. (2022). 2021 Rankings and estimates report. Retrieved from https://www.nea.org/research-publications 

National Park Service. (2015, April 10). Freeman School. https://www.nps.gov/home/planyourvisit/freemanschool.htm 

Omaha Public Schools. (n.d.). Budget Overview. https://www.ops.org/budget

Private School Review. (n.d.). Nebraska private high schools by tuition cost. https://www.privateschoolreview.com/tuition-stats/nebraska/high 

SchmidtBonne, S. (2021). Class size and pupil-teacher ratio: Fall 2020. Omaha Public Schools. https://www.nctq.org/dmsView/Omaha_20-21_class_size

Scottsbluff Public Schools. (2021, August 30). Annual Budget Hearing. https://www.sbps.net/cms/one.aspx?pageId=505796  

United State Census Bureau. (2021, May 18). Public school spending per pupil increases by largest amount in 11 years.https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2021/public-school-spending-per-pupil.html 

U.S. Department of Education. (2005). Education in the United States: A brief overview.https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/edus/index.html



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Looking for a nonpartisan presentation about government, democracy, public policy, voting rights, and more? Whether you are looking for a specific topic or a general overview, the LWVNE will work with you to present the information your group is looking for.

Don't know where to start? Consider one of our Nebraska specific primers: Government 101 or Schools 101.

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