Discusses public school governance and management under decentralization and explores whether decentralization can lead to school improvement. It further examines the types of external support and oversight that public schools need under decentralization, such as the functions of school boards, central offices, and teachers unions. Finally, it…

Although only a few dozen school systems have formally embraced site-based management, thousands of districts across the country are experimenting with it in some form. The study described in this report attempts to distill the experience of pioneering school systems, so that citizens and educators in other localities can benefit from it. During…