State education finance sets the stage for what is possible in schools. Too many state education finance systems today are inequitable, outdated, and inadequate, and there are often significant political barriers to change. Advocates for educational equity can and should play an essential role in shaping the allocation and structure of state…

Providing an in-depth look at the processes, pitfalls, and successes that can emerge from major education reform efforts at the state level, this volume covers the full policy change cycle in the development and transformation of the Illinois principal preparation program. Offering perspectives from the major stakeholder groups involved in…

Advance Illinois is an independent, objective voice for a healthy public education system that prepares all students in Illinois for success in college, careers, and civic life. Advocacy efforts have focused on securing equitable funding for schools, Common Core State Standards, high-quality assessments, and teacher quality efforts. As advocates…

This article considers the 2012 Chicago Teachers Strike in light of John Dewey's "The Public and Its Problems." It engages Dewey's conceptualization of practical reason to challenge the educational reform movement's commitment to technocratic decision-making.

The edTPA, a national performance assessment for teacher candidates, has seen rapid adoption across the country since its development in 2009. Against the national backdrop of high stakes testing and accountability, the edTPA was developed to be an indicator of teachers' readiness to teach. The varying perspectives and responses to edTPA in…

In 2015, the American Council of Trustees and Alumni (ACTA) celebrated 20 years of hard-charging higher education reform. Once a lone voice in the wilderness, ACTA is now leading the charge in their vigorous campaign to restore academic excellence, academic freedom, and accountability to American higher education. Core curricula, accreditation…

While the intent of the federal and state homeless education laws is clear, securing the educational rights of students without housing has been a long legal and political struggle in Chicago and Illinois. Education for students experiencing homelessness is a continuation of the civil rights struggle for equality in education and educational…

This piece explores questions of power, conflict, and community in education through a story of Chicago educators engaging in experiential inquiry processes. One of these processes is a "Theatre of the Oppressed" exercise for dealing with conflict in education settings. The other process described here focuses on a text that emerged from…

Since its inception, Learning Forward has provided members with informative, interactive annual conferences, institutes, and other learning programs; research-based and user-friendly publications; and opportunities for professional networking at national, regional, and state levels. Its new name reflects the fact that the organization has grown…

This case study investigates globalization and its growing impact on public school services to disenfranchised urban communities. Using a combination of periodicals, internal documents, and observations from the author, the research provides a narrative analysis of relations between community leaders of a low-income, Mexican immigrant community…

It was spring of 2004 when Joe Cytrynbaum interviewed to become the Program Director at Umoja Student Development Corporation in Chicago. Umoja is a weird hybrid of a youth development/educational reform organization. The organization operates from the premise that all sustainable change (for individuals and systems) has to happen in the context…

Over the past two decades, community organizing has emerged as an effective force for school improvement. In the context of shrinking education funding, stubborn opportunity and achievement gaps between low-income and wealthy children and between children of color and White children, and polarizing debate on school reform, community organizing…

What happens when teams from 57 cities building afterschool systems gather to discuss two key system responsibilities--improving afterschool programs and using data for informed decision-making? Lots of rich discussion. This report covers a national afterschool conference held in February 2013. It details what mayors, program providers, system…