The recent state government elections have changed the political makeup of education funding. The new governor ran on a pro-public education platform. Your state’s spending on education in the past has historically been low. Salaries, buildings, and curricula had been deemed “good enough.” The public polling indicates that residents see a need to increase funding, but their understanding of how the state funding works is low. With a lack of knowledge, residents are reluctant to increase taxes to fund some new initiatives such as increasing salaries, modernizing facilities, and implementing curricular changes.

The governor has selected you to design a four-page (front and back) brochure that will be mailed to all state residents explaining how your state funds education.

Your directions are to make the brochure understandable to someone reading on the 9th-grade level.

You are to include the following information:

• Sources of major tax revenue to the state;

• The major expenditure categories and why education ranks as such a large state expenditure;

• How the state equalizes funding so localities with greater capacity receive fewer state dollars and localities with less capacity receive more state dollars;

• The reason for any special programs initiated by the governor and how they relate to student achievement and economic growth;

• The role of the local, state, and federal governments in funding education; and

• Any other information you deem relevant to the explanation that may be relevant to your state.

Include graphs and charts to make your illustrations clear to the public.