The purpose of this study is to reflect on the evolution of a partnership between a university and urban charter high school serving a predominately African American population. Because of the author's embeddedness both as the researcher and participant member, this research assumes the paradigm of autoethnography. Reflections on key components of…

This article explores student empowerment in a restructured urban Title I middle school. The study includes data from eight participants in an action research project that involved a critical inquiry unit in an eighth-grade language arts class that asked students, "How are you empowered and disempowered by school?" Findings reveal that…

"Turnaround" strategies of educational reform promise that school closure, reconstitution, privatizing, and reopening them will bring miraculous results. Questioning the implications, this article situates "turnaround" strategies locally, following the closure of a predominantly minority high school in 2008, in Austin, Texas.…

A mainstay in NCLB and the Obama administration education plan is turning around low-performing schools. This study utilized surveys and interviews with school leaders from four turnaround urban high schools in Texas to understand student outcomes before and after school restructuring and reconstitution. Although some organizational changes were…

This research is a collection of comparative case studies that examine the perspectives of four principals in their 1st year of implementing the High School College Collaborative (HSCC), which works to provide traditionally underserved high school students with the opportunity to receive college credit, possibly an associate of arts degree,…

This longitudinal study of middle school science teachers explored if a teacher participation in the TPD program resulted in change in instructional practice as well as a significant increase in student learning. Four participating schools were matched and randomly assigned to intervention and control groups. Teacher and student outcomes were…

School decentralization, which has reshaped power relations in the educational system, has empowered teachers and parents. Taking Abbott's approach to professions, the authors examine teachers' perceptions of the implications of parents' empowerment for teacher--parent relations. In-depth interviews with homeroom teachers in affluent urban…

This article reports the results of a longitudinal study of 35 Swedish comprehensive schools involving interviews with teachers, school leaders, students, and parents carried out in 1980, 1982, 1985, and 2001. During the 35-year period covered by the study, the schools experienced significant reforms. The most important of these reforms involved a…

The ills of urban schools are well documented. The challenges of recruiting and retaining quality teachers, student mobility, poor conditions of school facilitates, and lack of parent involvement are only a few of the issues related to urban schools. Large comprehensive high schools are a staple of many urban school districts. This model of…

America's urban high schools are having trouble making sophomores, resulting in freshmen classes bulging with students repeating a grade. Research shows that these students are at high risk of failure and dropout. Urban districts have begun to respond to the notable "freshmen bulge" through school restructuring. This mixed-methods study…

Compares the school decentralization process and political background in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Miami. Finds that successful programs are characterized by local-level policymaking, strong alliances between district management and teachers, an atmosphere conducive to change and risk, and a willingness to allow schools independence in…

Interviewed principals, union stewards, and teachers in 17 Dade County (Florida) schools to ascertain the effects of reform and restructuring. Respondents were highly supportive of the county's shared management/shared decision-making program but unclear about its aims. Student achievement and curriculum improvement have not yet been evaluated.…

Emphasizing the salience of social and historical contexts in understanding contemporary urban school leadership, this article presents reflections from a subset of African American women principals who came of age during the Civil Rights era and assumed leadership subsequent to the enactment of the Chicago School Reform Act of 1988. The main…

Investigated the causes of school failure from a student perspective through interviews with 40 urban high school students experiencing academic difficulties. Findings magnify issues of power, resistance, and diversity as they are linked to patterns of student achievement urban schools must address before advancing specific restructuring efforts.…

Presents three case studies of the initial efforts of change agents in a large urban school district as they develop mechanisms to coordinate resources at school sites and to establish linkages with community agencies. The case studies demonstrate that implementation of change differed according to the local context and the personal visions of the…