Amid the cacophony of special interests fighting to be heard in statehouses and on Capitol Hill, a cadre of current and former chief state school officers is elbowing its way into the nation's education debate at a time when states are taking more control of K-12 education. A little more than a year old, Chiefs for Change is an invitation-only…

When 16 finalists come to Washington next week to make their final pitches in the $4 billion Race to the Top competition, most can expect to go home empty-handed. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, in announcing the finalists last week, said that no more than $2 billion will be divided among "very few winners" when the awards are…

The Big Picture schools focus on a "one student at a time" model, which eschews subject based-internships, independent projects, and exhibitions of students' work. The company's goal is to help students acquire the motivation, skills, and personal qualities they will need for college and life. In 1996, Big Picture founder Dennis Littky…