From a random sample of 6,102 school executives, 1,115 (18 percent) answered questions about their attitudes toward hiring relatives and receiving gifts and services from vendors. Tables illustrate data by principals at school level, and by superintendents. Demographic information about respondents is provided. (MLF)

Examples of school systems that are using technology effectively show that school districts should take the following steps: (1) link measurable educational purposes with technology; (2) manage organizational and instructional changes to support technology; (3) create a long-term infrastructure plan for the entire school district; and (4)…

Examines whether schools can or should restrict gang clothing and how to restrict gang clothing without infringing on students' constitutional rights. Concludes that a policy that stresses the importance of reducing distractions that inhibit learning is more likely to be found legal than a policy restricting gang communication via limitations on…

Public school uniforms are a recent development. Legal trends suggest that the courts are willing to defer to school authorities regarding dress codes--provided a clear link is established between the dress regulations and furtherance of the educational mission. Lists a range of options for a dress-code policy and how each of the available options…

Profiles Diana Lam, Gerry House, and Esperanza Zendejas, who accomplished what few women do: they became school superintendents. Qualified female candidates for superintendents are out there. School boards need to pay attention to the way they hire personnel and focus on leadership skills. In addition, boards can support professional memberships…

School board members and administrators are charged with educating a student body that is more diverse than any generation before them. However, top leadership positions remain mostly white and mostly male. Charts display the race and gender of administrators and board members by size of school district. (MLF)

This report describes the attitudes of district school board members about the implementation of school reforms based on the Kentucky Education Reform Act of 1990 (KERA). Information on attitudes toward KERA was gathered by a mail-out, 11-page questionnaire sent to a random sample of 600 local school board members. The questionnaire asked for the…

Many view the problem of violence as not merely a school problem, but as a much larger community problem that is finding its way into the schools. As a society, in addition to teaching our children how to be violent, we are giving them the tools of violence. There are steps that school board members can take to establish and maintain control of…

Aimed at school board members, this publication discusses the critical importance of developing an accountability system for a school district. The first chapter advises board members to balance their spending and resource allocations between equity and effectiveness. The option of greater regulatory flexibility mandates greater board…

Replicating a 1979 study, a survey of school library media specialists in 440 Iowa school districts was conducted in the spring of 1983 to determine the influence of a model policy published by the Iowa Department of Public Instruction (DPI) on the development, adoption, and provisions of school district policies for the selection of instructional…

The development of state program review and different state approaches to program review are examined, along with policy issues, implications, and alternatives. It is noted that most state policy calls for periodic reviews of college programs leading to certificates or degrees. New developments in state program reviews include: review of…

Individual members of state legislatures wield the greatest influence in state level policy formation. This was one of the findings of a study that identified the power and influence context of state-level policymaking. Data were gathered from six states (Arizona, California, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Illinois) using an instrument…

A study was done to determine whether administrator salaries in 14 Ohio school districts were a reflection of administrator responsibilities or of length of service, and to find what factors accounted for salary differentials. Although previous research suggests factors for assigning value to administrative positions, traditional salary structures…

Over the last 10 years, declining school enrollments resulted in nearly 30,000 school closures nationwide. Little research has been done, however, on the effects of closing a high school. This report interprets data gathered both before and after the closing of Wheaton Warrenville High School in a large Chicago suburban school district to…

The 1982 school board elections in the geographical and political Ottawa-Carleton (Ontario) regions gave rise to a record number of new candidates for election to the two public and two separate school boards that comprise the region. This paper examines some of the reasons for the dramatic increase and develops a profile of their characteristics.…