Background: Virtual schools--free, state-funded, credit-awarding elementary and secondary schools offering curricula and programs exclusively online--are a rapidly expanding sector of U.S. education. Some of the largest of these schools have low graduation rates and receive "failing" rankings on state accountability metrics. They…

This article documents the historical development of United Methodist Church-affiliated Ohio Wesleyan University during the nineteenth century. It relies significantly upon a synthesis of its 50- and 100-year histories and supporting Methodist educational literature. While the struggles and mortality rates of church colleges founded during the…

This paper presents findings of a study that investigated educational change within two innovative schools experiencing financial crisis. Data were derived from interviews with 14 educators (principals and teachers) and from observations of school board meetings. The two schools were: (1) the Team Academy, a nongraded K-6 school; and (2) the…