Consolidation of Schools and Districts What the Research Says and What It Means

Policy Brief - Feb 01, 2011

Author(s) - Craig Howley, Jerry Johnson, and Jennifer Petrie, Ohio University

This policy brief provides a review of the research that has been done on school and district consolidation and finds that consolidation will generally not save money nor will it improve education outcomes particularly for minority and poor students. Policymakers are urged to make decisions about consolidation on a case-by-case basis with local input. Further, for very large school districts, deconsolidation may be a means of improving fiscal efficiency and learning outcomes.