"Massive 'reforms' have poured billions of dollars into our schools, but we have yet to see results in terms of student achievement. It is time that we step back from the current bureaucratic policies that emphasize central control and regulation. We need to reward success not failure. This is exactly the message of this thoughtful book by Hanushek and Lindseth. It is a message that should be shouted from the rooftops of Washington and every state capital."-- William J. Bennett, Claremont Institute, former U.S.

Secretary of Education "Eric Hanushek and Alfred Lindseth do a remarkable job of shedding light on how we fund the education of America's children. In many cases, they find that, despite a tremendous increase in our financial investment in public schools during the last several decades, our students are falling farther behind their peers across the globe. We cannot continue to rely on arguments defending the status quo. School funding and education policy should empower leaders to advance innovative reform and ensure direct accountability for student achievement."-- Jeb Bush, former governor of Florida Hanushek and Lindseth have penned a clear, empirically impressive, and insightful critique of court-driven efforts to improve public schools. This is a book destined to reshape debates about the role judges can and should play in twenty-first-century school reform."-- Frederick Hess, author of Common Sense School Reform "This is a must-read for policymakers, parents, and the public. Too many people fail to understand the seriousness of the educational crises we face.

Too many think that tinkering with the current system will be enough. This book not only sets out the dimensions of the problem clearly and forcefully but also provides a path for improvement."-- Roy Romer, chairman of Strong Schools America, former Los Angeles school superintendent, and former Colorado governor "The way we fund schooling in America defies both common sense and fundamental decency. However, as Schoolhouses, Courthouses, and Statehouses shows, most recent efforts to reform school finance haven't made nearly the difference their proponents promised. For those interested in improving results in public schools, this is a must read. Everyone--including me--will find something to disagree with. But the book is thoughtful, provocative, and helpful in framing the core elements of a more promising approach."-- Kati Haycock, president of the Education Trust "This book makes an important contribution to the subjects of school finance and school reform and the litigation surrounding them.

The authors, a widely cited academic economist and an experienced lawyer who have both been involved in this litigation in many states, make a good team."-- Michael Podgursky, author of Teacher Pay and Teacher Quality.