Family and community engagement are proven strategies for strengthening schools. Across the United States, parents and community members have pressed school boards and district leadership for more transparency and broader participation in decisions about school turnaround. The purpose of this qualitative case study is to understand the…

In April 2008, the Wisconsin Erie School District attempted and failed to pass a school bond referendum to renovate its high school. In November 2008, again the school district did not pass a referendum. Interestingly, in the 2009-2010 school year, the district was successful in passing a bond referendum. Although the original bond measure called…

Using critical race discourse analysis, this study examines descriptions of a heated controversy over the proposed closure of the only primarily black high school in a large urban city. Participants included community members and the district and school leaders who were key in the controversy. Based on Foucault's analysis of power we looked for…

This is the final external evaluation report prepared by SRI International for the Rural Math Excel Partnership (RMEP) project, an investing in innovation (i3) development project funded by the U.S. Department of Education. Operated by Virginia Advanced Study Strategies, Inc. (VASS), the RMEP project included six rural school districts (LEAs) in…

Reports on interviews with community leaders associated with four rural Ohio high schools. Finds that these schools are the nuclei of their communities, are highly valued, and provide a community facility for recreational and cultural activities and for adult meetings. (SV)

Reports the results of a survey of a random sample of 250 Missouri high school American History teachers, 88 percent of whom responded to a questionnaire mailed to them. (JM)

The European Post-16 Education Strategies and Parity of Esteem project examined problems arising from the disparity in esteem as regards initial vocational education and general/academic education. The final report of this 2-year project is presented here. The study examined uppersecondary school reforms within and across eight European…

Describes a New Jersey high school's development and implementation of a question-driven model for interdisciplinary research designed to improve students' writing skills, research skills, and their understanding of, and interest in, the local community. (PRA)

Describes how the author and a colleague engaged their students in a variety of research and writing activities to prepare the students for the merger of two school systems and to help them participate intelligently in a bond referendum campaign to fund the building of a new high school. (PRA)

The dissertation summarized here assessed the priority of selected educational goals as perceived by certain representative groups in a school district and determined the degree to which the respective groups' expectations were being met. The six groups studied were students, teachers, lay citizens, administrators, citizen advisory committee…

The purpose of this practicum was to develop, implement, and evaluate a two-way communication program for Del Paso High School. The overall goal was to create an ever-increasing circle of people well informed about the school--an ambiance, an environment of knowledge and understanding. Relying on the experience and examples of other administrators…

This case study examines an effort to restructure secondary education in a small rural Massachusetts public high school. Data documenting the change process include archival records, participant observation, and interviews and questionnaires conducted with community members, school staff, and students in grades 7-12. The restructuring effort…

Interviews with adult residents and high school students in two rural Kansas communities that had consolidated their high schools found that adults in the community that lost its high school had more negative reactions and feelings of loss than adults in the community that retained its high school. Student reactions were generally positive.…

A case study of Oneida High School (Oneida, Tennessee) in December 1997 examined influences and unique circumstances that sustained the school in the face of possible closure and enabled it to "flourish." The study included structured interviews with over 70 individuals in the school and community, focus groups, and informal…

This dissertation examines how stakeholders in an Appalachian Kentucky high school addressed educational problems that they targeted for reform. Set against the backdrop of the Kentucky Education Reform Act (KERA), this ethnographic study describes the challenges of effectively coupling top-down state mandates with bottom-up advocacy and…