Amid the growth of charter schools, autonomous schools, and private management organizations, an increasing number of urban districts are moving toward a portfolio management model (PMM). In a PMM, the district central office oversees schools that operate under a variety of governance models. The expansion of PMMs raises questions about local…

An institutional analysis is presented of the policy, political, and legislative events associated with the failure of an attempt in 2006 by the state of Maryland to take control of 11 schools in Baltimore City and turn them over to independent managers or into charter schools under No Child Left Behind. The place of the failed…

This paper presents an overview of legislative developments and policy debates that occurred in Maryland during 1994-95 and their effects on school finance. These developments include: (1) the election, by a narrow margin, of a new Democratic governor who promised to restore state cuts in educational expenditures; (2) the increase of…