This report examines political conflict in decision making in three public schools, and describes how the Teacher Participation Project (TPP), which was implemented in two of the schools, sought to minimize such conflict by institutionalizing local governance structures for teachers. The report consists of two parts. Part I investigates various aspects of political conflict in schools, and includes (1) a chapter on the schools' demographic and political contexts; (2) a case study (in a non-TPP high school) on the power struggle and political factions that developed among the faculty because of a student discipline problem; (3) a case study (in a TPP middle school) on problems that arose when a small group of teachers and staff tried to circumvent the faculty governance structure in initiating a bilingual program; and (4) a case study (in a TPP elementary school) on staff factionalism that resulted when a new administrator initiated changes in the school's decision making structure. Part II, which examines TPP-initiated governance structures as a way of dealing with school politics, describes how TPP evolved; discusses the project's impact; analyzes the concept of teacher participation in governance as an evolutionary process; and suggests that teacher participation in governance improves both teaching and student learning. (Author/MJL)