State takeovers of public-school districts are a controversial method to help fix struggling schools across the United States. This article considers the reasons behind takeovers, their effects on schools and communities, and both the positive and negative aspects of state involvement. We examine various state laws and specific examples from 3…

Multilingualism gives rise to cognitive, educational, economic, and sociocultural benefits. In fact, it's one of the U.S. Department of Education's big initiatives through Raise the Bar: Lead the World. In this infographic, gain insights about the growing population of multilingual learners and how educational agencies, schools, and educators can…

The purpose of the present study was to explore the nature of hiring a public school superintendent in a context, which challenged school board trustees to select a particular type of leader. The researcher's intent was to study three former school board trustees who were initially involved in what they considered a complex change process,…

This article draws from a Cultural Political Economy framework and an abolitionist lens to examine various understandings of safety within Chicago Public Schools (CPS). We investigate how the Chicago Board of Education (BOE) uses convivial rhetoric and institutional mechanisms to erase the demands of Black and Brown students and ultimately…

In keeping with the provisions of Tennessee Code Annotated 49-1-201(12), this Annual Statistical and Financial Report for fiscal year 2021-2022 provides an array of information providing statistics about the public school systems in Tennessee. Sections include: (1) Public School Officers; (2) Statistical Summaries; (3) Financial Summaries; and (4)…

School systems throughout the world are struggling with the issue of who will lead public schools today, and in the future. The patriarchal model from the past, when authority was not to be questioned and educational leadership was viewed in a straightforward, one-dimensional perspective, has been replaced by a complicated combination of…

Over the last 30 years, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) has become a rare model for urban school district improvement. That success stems, in part, from an expansive network of nonprofit organizations, advocates and grassroots community leaders, business leaders, and philanthropic funders that work together -- often in partnership with the district…

In the United States, most students attend a public school in a district overseen by a democratically elected school board. In political science, school boards are often portrayed as ten thousand democracies (Berkman and Plutzer, 2005). School board members are often described as "citizens-policymakers" because they "constitute a…

Turnover of public school superintendents can be both costly and counterproductive for school districts. For those who are successful, who remain in one district as superintendent, and receive contract renewals from their school boards, it is important to uncover what may impact that success. Measures of personality have been applied to the fields…

The hiring process is a shared responsibility between the employer and the prospective candidates seeking employment. The purpose of the hiring or selection process is to find the candidate with the right knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA's) to perform the job or role and be successful within the employment process for the organization or…

"Champions of Literacy" is a guide designed for Alaska school board members. This guide recognizes school board members as Champions of Literacy in their local education ecosystem and provides them with the tools to plan strategically, analyze school and district data, understand key approaches, and deepen their commitment to…

In post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans, control of the public schools was wrested from the seven-member Orleans Parish School Board (OPSB). Unheard-of academic gains followed the city's switch to a near-universal charter-school system, yet returning to failure always felt as close as the next hurricane. Give OPSB power again, people said, and the…

Background or Context: Public school library book challenges have garnered ample media attention in recent years as many school districts and advocacy organizations have reported record numbers of book challenges. Book challenges are not a new phenomenon, historically speaking, but they have often illuminated values clashes in communities and…

The public education systems of many countries have undergone governance reforms involving administrative decentralisation, corporatisation and community 'empowerment'. In this paper, we examine the significance of local participation and partnerships in the context of public school autonomy and their corporatisation. Focusing specifically on the…

Should school boards be in charge of schools? School boards serve as sites for local democracy, but their power has been under siege for over half a century. This study provides results from an original survey in order to assess who Americans want in charge of their schools. Given that the strength of school boards is supposed to be their ability…