The investigation reported on in this paper aimed at determining and analyzing the costs of public school district central administration in South Dakota, Iowa, and Missouri. Financial reports to the State education agency for the school year 1965-66 were examined from 30 school districts in each State. Districts selected were the ten largest, ten…

Describes and analyzes a decade-long effort at administrative development by which the Colombian Ministry of Education struggled to bring order to a jumble of state educational systems that were functioning in a disorganized condition of semi-anarchy. Examines the historical organizational and administrative problems associated with the public…

State systems are seen as becoming more centralized. Many college presidents see a diminishing of campus autonomy by governing board staffs of higher education. Statewide planning and opening lines of communication are also discussed by George Janik and George B. Weathersby. (MLW)

Four critical first steps to establish trust among school boards, schools, and the public are: (1) building a community-wide consensus about the essential purposes of schools; (2) agreeing on how to provide choices for minority viewpoints; (3) selecting key education leaders; and (4) providing these leaders with the freedom they need to do the…

Analyzes the relationship between radical social transformation and educational reform in Algeria, China, Cuba, Ethiopia, Iran, Mozambique, and Nicaragua. Examines seven policy areas before and after transformation: centralized control, access to education, tracking, curriculum, personnel, language of instruction, and literacy. (28 references) (SV)

This case study of Wakayama Prefecture focuses on the postwar Japanese government's efforts to facilitate administration of rural areas via "town-making." School consolidation is among the means used to fabricate a new sense of social cohesion from a patchwork of depopulated and aging villages. The goal is to promote a national modern…

Discusses changes in scholarly and cultural records resulting from the transition from print to electronic information. The role of libraries is considered, including licensing agreements, interlibrary loans, broadcast media, networks, preservation of records, and dangers of centralization; and problems with reliance on electronic information…

A "10% solution" to systematic coordination of university collaborations with local schools involves a decentralized approach with incentives and a focus for coordination. The overall effect is that the institution lays out no additional cash, redirects funds to support coordination, and intensifies and focuses scattered efforts for…

Honoring the French Revolution's bicentennial, examines its legacy for modern France. Contends that 1789's imprint appears in France's centralized bureaucracy, strong political divisions (conservative-liberal-socialist), church-state separation, and tendency for government to argue ends justify means. Maintains the Revolution also spawned…

Analysis of recent vocational education reforms in Poland, Hungary, and the Czech and Slovak republics looks at the nature of modernization efforts and structural changes, and the role of foreign assistance and international cooperation. Current initiatives are seen as an attempt to catch up with the Western world of the 1970s. (MSE)

Strategic planning in higher education is seen in this book as an essential element in the life of a successful college or university. This book begins by defining strategic planning and explains how to identify the core problems a college or university wants to address and solve through the planning process. It continues with advice on how to…

This document provides a brief history of urban school governance and summarizes some of the unique governance structures that have emerged in six American cities and one Canadian province over recent years. By 1920, ward-based systems in most urban areas had given way to systems with a high degree of centralization. These systems were more…

The Educational Priorities Panel undertook a study to find out how funds are distributed among community school districts in New York (New York) and how resources are distributed to individual schools within the system. For the first time, in 1992, the New York City Board of Education published detailed budgets for the 32 community school…

The National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS), Library of Congress, administers a free library program for those unable to read standard printed materials, reproducing and distributing works in braille, recorded disc, and recorded cassette. Previous studies of the distribution network had identified costs and…

This paper discusses the need for developing provincial/state, regional, and district partnerships to provide critical support for library media programs at the building level. It maintains that the experts who provide leadership at each level must be strong advocates for the integration of the library media program into all aspects of the…