The chief forces responsible for modifying Pennsylvania's archaic blue law were economic pressures, religious beliefs, political tendencies, and the social conditions following World War I. (MB)

It would be hard to squeeze over 1,750 books on middle-level school reform onto a five-foot bookcase! With 22 experts' assistance, a manageable, three-part annotated bibliography of 80 books, reports, and journal articles covering core research areas, state reports, and critical reading was assembled. Samuel Totten's own bibliography (in section…

Reviews recent state and federal rural school funding litigation. Concludes that while rural school advocates have been relatively successful in the courts, efforts to obtain adequate state funding for rural schools through the legislative process are only partially successful. (Contains 16 references.)(PKP)

State decentralization of higher education emerged as a significant governance trend of the 1980s to 1990s. Yet little is known about how or why decentralization first became an issue to which state governments paid serious attention. This study employs multiple theories to analyze the agenda-setting stage of policy formation in three states…

Reviews recent federal policy alignment initiatives, discussing the Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration (CSRD) grants program and noting North Carolina's general policy environment. Uses evaluation data from North Carolina schools receiving CSRD grants to suggest that initial school efforts are marked by two significant absences: the absence…

Explains a type of lawsuit called a Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP) action. Notes that a number of states have passed anti-SLAPP laws. Contends that this development in libel law is relevant to student publications advisers. (PM)

Assistant executive director of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association argues that local school districts, not the state legislature, should develop policies to allow home-schooled students to participate in extracurricular activities. (PKP)

Synthesizes views of the student press and information about successful political strategy to propose a model for passing state legislation for providing some form of statutory protection for student expression in school-sponsored publications. (SR)

Describes how two progressive Democrats initiated the school charter movement in California. They crafted a legislative proposal that retained the attractive features of the voucher movement (school choice, local control, and responsiveness to clients) while preserving the basic principles of a free, nonsectarian, and nondiscriminatory public…

Although seriously needing clarification and cleanup, California's charter legislation is demonstrating its capacity as an educational policy power tool. The legislation favors strong elements of the existing system, including dedicated, forward-thinking staff, boards, and union leaders. Weak elements--micromanaging boards, unsupportive central…

Uses survey methodology to investigate elementary and middle school teachers' actual, preferred, and deprived participation in 16 areas of school-level decision-making involving New Jersey's whole-school reform program over 2-year period. Finds, for example, that teachers had less than preferred participation in all 16 areas and high levels of…

Discusses first case to challenge an employer's failure to provide contraceptive coverage to women working in private educational institutions as discriminatory, as well as proposed legislation involving contraceptive coverage. Explores several alternatives legislators must consider when deciding whether to implement such legislation, including…

Describes why a new law requiring California colleges to warn people of security breaches involving their computerized personal data has administrators worried about both cost and liability. (EV)