This study examined teachers' attitudes and beliefs in one over-performing urban/suburban high school of the state-mandated curriculum framework under conditions that I label a continuously uncertain reform effort or a top-down mandated curriculum involving constant mixed-messages as to its content, accountability demands, and future existence.…

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the nature of activities in the change process undertaken by two initiatives to produce national standards in academic disciplines, national assessments and accountability measures. The Common Core State Standards Initiative, a project coordinated by the National Governors Association and the Council of…

This report provides a first-hand description and analysis of reforms initiated in the administrator-preparation program at the University of Southern Mississippi (USM). USM is one among eight public and private institutions in Mississippi that are currently redesigning their administrator-preparation programs in accordance with state mandates and…

The public view of charter schools and their proposed mission will have a major impact on how well this school reform effort will be sustained. Support for charter schools in Pennsylvania has grown to such an extent that it may prevent demand for voucher systems. Parents dissatisfied with public schools elected to transfer their children to…

The charter-school idea has spread rapidly across the United States. One-half of the states have adopted charter-school laws since 1991, and legislatures in other states have given the idea careful consideration. This paper explores the political factors that shape charter-school laws. The paper utilizes the policy-innovation-diffusion framework…

Many Canadian provinces are looking to Alberta for guidance about charter schools. This case study examines the closure of one charter school to identify the obstacles other schools may face. This study uses critical policy analysis and the "politics of interpretation" to examine the political context of educational policy issues. While…

This study explored the university/state relationship during a time of teacher education certification reform at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Data for the study consisted of archival texts including elementary education area faculty meeting minutes and departmental memos, creating a case study of reform. Michel Foucault's notion of…

A specialist in law and college athletics and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Director of Enforcement discuss federal and state attempts at regulation of college sports. The first outlines reasons for, scope of, and success of congressional involvement. The second looks at similar issues at the state level and the NCAA's…

This paper reports the perspectives of county-level supervisors who have been important in advancing state-mandated school reforms in West Virginia. A chronological background on West Virginia school reform from 1982 through 1997 covers legislation related to the "Recht Decision," state reform initiatives, creation of the School Building…

This study investigated apsects of state regulation of public research or doctoral universities in all states and territories of the United States. The study examined: (1) dimensions of state control and administrative flexibility, and changes occurring between 1983 and 1995; (2) the extent to which state regulation of public universities is a…

This document contains two papers on excellence in business and education leadership. "Corporate Leadership in Improving Student Achievement" (Edward B. Rust, Jr.) explains why business must remain involved in education and discusses the following efforts of the State Farm Insurance Company to assume a leadership role in educational…

A longitudinal study examined the factors affecting the long-term success of a midwestern tech prep consortium consisting of one community college and four counties with a mix of rural, urban, and suburban communities. The study was designed to identify the effects of systematic change over time from the following perspectives: students' skill…