In 2009, a seldom-used policy lever emerged in the form of a competitive grant program, Race to the Top (RTTT), and sparked a flurry of state-led initiatives as states vied for federal dollars. The current study examines the policymaking context that surrounded these events and propelled Tennessee to the top of the race among the states. Through…

With increasing frequency, U.S. presidents have orchestrated relations between federal and state governments. A defining feature of this "executive federalism" is a pragmatic willingness to both borrow from and reconstitute very different types of past federalisms. A case in point is President Barack Obama's Race to the Top (RttT)…

This paper examines the debate in the U.S. Senate over the reasons why state governments have decreased funding for higher education. One side believes that federal mandates on states to pay for Medicaid have forced them to reduce spending on higher education. The other side believes that states unwisely reduced taxes, which decreased their…

This book is a study of the processes through which educational policies are formulated, adopted, and implemented at the national level of government. In particular, the author focuses his attention on policies affecting the programs administered by the U.S. Office of Education during the term of the 90th Congress (1967-68). Although the author's…

The author addresses the trends that characterize the interrelationship of Congress, the Administration, and the nation's education interest groups, and suggests that the system of policy-making for education is in transition, and its outcome will have much to do with the quality of Washington's response to the nation's educational needs.…

This article considers the advantages and disadvantages of having evaluation users increase the specificity of evaluation requirements through a review of legislative requirements behind several congressionally mandated national-level evaluations, and an in-depth examination of one congressionally mandated evaluation in which very specific design…

Discusses the political battles over federal support of education in the Congress since Reagan's election to the Presidency, including the reaction to the impact of the report of the National Commission on Excellence in Education. Contrasts the activities and attitudes of Reagan and Kentucky's late Democratic Congressman Carl Perkins. (PGD)