This article addresses what schools that seek to promote social mobility as opposed to status maintenance among their students really ask of them. Focusing on several prominent charter school organizations, the article details the social and behavioral expectations of the schools and understands them through an application of Goffman's work on…

Perfectionism, which the author defines as beliefs and behaviors associated with high expectations for one's performance, is not necessarily detrimental. Many successful people demonstrate perfectionism that the author labels "functional." They set goals that are attainable, based on realistic self-knowledge. When planning a new venture they focus…