The purpose of this study was to determine whether the students who attended one elementary school in Miami-Dade County, Florida, run by The Edison Project (Edison Schools, Inc.) made greater academic progress than comparable students who attended other district schools. The paper provides a longitudinal examination of the students' academic…

Information about two possible actions as followups to school choice is provided in this paper, with attention to the concepts of teachers in private practice and charter schools. The movement of teachers in private practice involves educators as entrepreneurs who contract with school districts. Benefits include a high degree of accountability and…

From August 1992 through February 1996, Education Alternatives, Inc. (EAI) provided private management of 9 out of 180 Baltimore City, Maryland, public schools. The "Tesseract" schools remained public property, and teachers continued to be public-sector employees. After three and one-half years, the city cut short the planned 5-year…

In 1993, the Minneapolis School District entered into a 3-year contract with a private company, Public Strategies Group (PSG). Under the contract, the president of PSG was to serve as the district superintendent and meet certain goals and objectives determined by the district. This paper presents findings of an evaluation of the Minneapolis/PSG…

In 1992 the Baltimore City Public School District (Maryland) entered into a 5-year contract with Education Alternatives, Incorporated (EAI), to manage 9 of its schools. Baltimore's private-management model differed significantly from that of Dade County, Florida, in that EAI was given overall management responsibility. Data were gathered through a…

In 1990, the Dade County Public School System (DCPS) in Dade County, Florida, entered into a 5-year contract with a private company, Educational Alternatives Incorporated (EAI), to manage the educational services at South Pointe Elementary School. This paper presents findings of an evaluation of the DCPS-EAI collaboration at South Pointe. Data…

Although making profits from public education is not new, what is new is the recent development of corporate interest in taking over the organization and management of public education specifically for profit-making purposes. The study reported in this paper focuses on the intrusion of "big business" into an educational arena that…

The opportunity to increase private company revenues and the pressure to minimize losses within a public school district's cafeteria and general funds have propelled the emergence of private food-service-management companies (FSMCs). This paper presents findings of a study that examined privatization of school food services and its effect on the…

During the early 1990s, the Hartford, Connecticut, public school system experienced serious financial problems and a downward trend in the key indicators of educational success. In 1994 the Hartford, Connecticut, board of education granted Education Alternatives, Incorporated (EAI), a 5-year contract to manage the school district. This paper…

Colleges and universities are privatizing various institutional components and are seeking greater autonomy from state government. In defining privatization, the paper makes the distinction between privatizing and contracting, and notes six areas where a good or service can be owned or managed by the government or by the private sector: ownership…