Without an enforceable policy, school athletics programs are beset by politics, high finance, and public sentiment. The most nettlesome problems include loss of instructional time to sports and extracurricular activities; the appropriateness and effectiveness of no-pass/no-play rules; lack of sportsmanship; proliferation of interstate competition;…

The U.S. Supreme Court's "Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier" decision (1988) gave principals new authority to monitor the content of student publications. Since then, the "Student Press Law Center Report," a clearinghouse for aggrieved publication advisers and student editors, has reported censorship problems that never…

As television programs and networks proliferate, many districts and education groups are drafting guidelines to help teachers choose high-quality, curriculum-related programs. The American Association of School Administrators is enlisting thousands of schools in an effort to ban Channel One from classrooms. Sidebars outline alternatives and state…

According to some participating school administrators, the process of conforming to the standardized dropout reporting system required by a national pilot project to track dropouts has been time-consuming and expensive. California experienced difficulty with adding junior high statistics. Florida exerted negligible effort, using an already…

Representative Augustus Hawkins, outgoing chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Education and Labor, stunned state governments and the education community in January by introducing a bill requiring each state to certify that its public education funds are or will be equalized by 1996, contingent on federal funding redistribution penalties. (MLH)

According to recent research, women superintendents have less coaching experience than men, head wealthier districts, work longer hours, are more often single and childless, and obtain the position later in life. They also smoke and drink less. Males and females were equally satisfied with their school board relationships, community stature, and…

Explores three female superintendents' views concerning the effects of societal attitudes, job mobility problems, family responsibilities, and mentoring on their career advancement. Women's administrative careers need not be limited if their nurturing, supportive role is reinforced by risk-taking and assertiveness. Increased mentoring…

The Excellent Principal Inventory is a unique evaluation instrument that enables principals to obtain confidential performance feedback from superiors, peers, and teachers. Five research-based commitments (to student success, teaching and learning, the school staff, innovation, and leadership) reflect the values and behaviors developed for the…

Discusses U.S. demographic trends in the 1990s, such as an aging population, an increasing minority population, and a shift to the South and the Southwest. Predicts tough times, an eroding psychology of affluence, generation gap closure, and a growing movement toward more rigid morality. Discusses educational implications. (MLH)

Describes how 16 superintendents spurred district reform efforts by creating a positive environment through a four-step process: establishing trust, planning the district's future, communicating their vision effectively, and following through. An inset provides advice to other change-oriented superintendents. (MLH)

The 1988 American Association of School Administrators Leadership Development Awards went to North Gibson School Corporation (Princeton, Indiana) for a bottom-up approach to staff development called Teachers Teaching Teachers and to Duval County Public Schools (Jacksonville, Florida) for an innovative Principal Preparation Program. (MLH)

Describes a model leadership academy program at Topeka (Kansas) Public Schools in cooperation with Kansas State University. Created in 1987, the academy was designed to serve the school system's unique needs while fostering innovative educational experiences for administrator preparation. Includes four references. (MLH)

Existing teacher evaluation procedures are flawed because they are too "global" and fail to recognize differences attributable to content and learner ability. Lee S. Shulman hopes to change this situation through the Teacher Assessment Project, a Carnegie Corporation-sponsored program developing alternative assessment exercises. (MLH)

The American Association of School Administrators has recently tapped all segments of the education community to gather and craft a viable, forward-looking vocational education recommendation to Congress. At present, vocational education is not integrated with the regular curriculum. Many barriers need to fall, and education needs to drop its…

The Cobb County (Georgia) School District, which transports 61,000 students to 88 schools on 763 buses daily, avidly studied privatization possibilities. Since the bus fleet is relatively new and drivers' wages compare favorably with metropolitan Atlanta's, the district concluded it could transport students better and more cheaply. A sidebar lists…