This book is an introduction and guide to school-based management, a decentralized form of organization in which decisions that have traditionally been made by a superintendent or school board are made by the local school. Chapter 1 provides an overview of decision-making in public school systems starting with a brief history of the trend toward centralization and describing the typical roles and influence of the superintendent, the local school board, the principal, teacher organizations, and parents or citizens. Chapter 2 provides the basic rationale for school-based management: when those who are affected by decisions share in making those decisions, better decisions are made. Chapter 3 defines school based management as a process of reorganizing the school's decision-making structure to allow for input from all affected constituencies. Chapter 4 explores the school-based management council as a mechanism for implementing decentralized management. Issues discussed include membership, size, selection process, selection of community members, relations with the school board and superintendent, principal role, and council procedures. Chapter 5 discusses how to get started, and includes a list of problems and hazards in the start-up process. A brief conclusion summarizes the argument of the book as a whole: that school-based management is not a panacea but a process of educational renewal. References are included. (TE)