Argues that state legislatures have ignored the inherent conflict between the corporate objective of shareholder profit maximization and the public's interest in children's education when for-profit corporations deliver services. In the absence of stricter legislative governance, the courts must recognize new causes of action that safeguard the…

Former Governor of North Carolina describes his efforts to improve the state's education system, to make it "First in America." Describes five educational goals related thereto: A smart start, excellent teaching, safe schools, high student performance, and business, community, and family support. Discusses implications of new federal…

Describes New York's charter-school legislation; explains charter-school responsibilities at state department of education and local boards of education; includes the development of the application form; discusses how state and local agencies shape charter schools through the application-review process. (PKP)

Soon after the California Peer Assistance and Review program was signed into law, the Mt. Diablo Unified School District and the local teacher union came to an agreement about implementing the program. Key factors were mutual respect and need for mentoring programs for beginning teachers and for experienced teachers needing assistance. (MLH)

We describe a theory of legislative logic. This logic is based on the observation that each succeeding stage of the legislative process has increasingly stringent rules and becomes more consequential. This logic unevenly distributes the influence of social movements across the legislative process. Social movements should have less influence at…

In this article, the author discusses how she and the other librarians at State University of New York (SUNY) Cortland learned to "scrub" their records so that patrons remained protected, but the librarians still had access to useful statistics. The topic of library privacy regulations is complex. There is a host of legislation at both…

In Georgia, the technical college system is flourishing and offers the Peachtree State's students a number of career opportunities that are ripe for the picking. Georgia has invested more than one billion dollars in its technical college system. The investment was well worth it, as thousands of students were drawn to the newly built and modernized…

In 2002, Michael Bloomberg, New York City's newly elected mayor, hoped to fix his city's public schools, which were widely perceived as plagued by a gamut of problems that ranged from low test scores to patronage-riddled schools and districts. A special bill approved by the New York State Legislature made Bloomberg solely accountable to the New…

Policy "alternatives" begin as general ideas, and are inherently distinct from an innovation or reform that has been adopted by policy makers in a specific context in order to serve particular purposes. However, the interplay between the idea itself and that moment in time when it is adopted has often not been fully understood. In this article,…

Policymakers are increasingly focusing on children exposed to domestic violence. The 1999 Minnesota legislature amended the definition of child neglect to include a child's exposure to family violence. What was initially seen as a simple change to bring more attention to children exposed to domestic violence resulted in great turmoil across…

This article analyzes the public rhetoric during the November 2002 vote over bilingual education in Colorado and Massachusetts. We argue that the neoassimilationist views displayed in both states represent a new step in the evolution of assimilation theory and ideology--one that has adapted to both the current immigrant environment and to…

Students, parents, and the general public are interested in what is happening in their schools. The ability to communicate openly and effectively can help generate a positive image that builds a community's confidence in schools. Although open communication can thus be beneficial, much of the information people want is subject to privacy laws:…

A few years ago a state legislator traveled throughout California to promote a referendum that would prohibit homosexuals from teaching in classrooms. Together with his companions, they said that allowing homosexuals to teach in the classroom would expose young people to the "wrong role models." In this article, the author shares his views on this…

In 2001, the Massachusetts State Lottery Commission released for sale a new "instant lottery ticket" "scratch-and-play" game card named "Caesars [sic] Palace[R]" (played by scratching the surface of each card at designated spots to reveal hidden numbers or images). It offered ten grand prizes of $1,000,000 each and a…

One of the most controversial legal and political events in the death of Theresa Marie Schiavo was the passage, by the Florida Legislature, of what become known as "Terri's Law," allowing the Florida Governor to replace her feeding and hydration tube, and requiring the appointment of a special guardian ad intern who reported to the…