| The Education of All Handicapped Children Act (P.L. 94-142), was enacted by the United States Congress on November 29, 1975. The Act required that all handicapped children be provided a free appropriate education at public expense. Meeting the mandate to provide appropriate services to handicapped children has placed a financial requirement on school districts to appropriate funds for specialized services. In Pennsylvania, intermediate units were established to help alleviate many of the burdens of special education. Consequently, there is a growing concern about the need for adequate funding of special education in intermediate units.;In order to assess the perceptions, a survey questionnaire, developed by the author, was completed by the twenty-nine intermediate special education directors.;The findings indicate that there was an increase in funding for selected small, medium, and large intermediate units in the selected school years. After adjusting the subsidy for inflation the three selected intermediate units' funding increased in the selected school years.;The intermediate unit special education directors perceive the current special education funding method and distribution of monies as inequitable. The directors perceive the funding formula to be manipulated by politics and advocacy groups.;The purpose of this study was two-fold. First, it analyzed the funding of special education in selected school years and intermediate units. Second, it analyzed the perceptions intermediate unit special education directors have about special education funding during the 1984-85 school year.;Recommendations include that the Pennsylvania Department of Education should provide an incentive to expand special education programs within intermediate units. The Pennsylvania Department of Education and state legislature need to develop a system of special education funding which takes into account geographical and cost of living differences. The intermediate unit special education directors and the Pennsylvania Department of Education need to strengthen their input into development of the funding mechanism for special education.;The results of this study have implications for the intermediate unit special education directors facing the implementation difficulties concerning special education funding. A more detailed analysis of the effectiveness of special education funding would allow for a more concrete approach to revenue enhancement. |
