No Child Left Behind (NCLB) asks that states "restructure" schools that fail for six years running to make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) toward full proficiency on the part of all students by the year 2014. Although restructuring efforts by most states have been modest, Pennsylvania, in the summer of 2002, directed the School District…

Engaging students requires giving them a say in what they learn and how they will learn it. However, in strictly disciplined, rule-bound schools with test-driven curricula, this cannot happen. Edison Schools, Inc., a for-profit Education Management Organization (EMO), and Confluence Academy, an Edison-run school located in one of the most…

The management of school systems by for-profit private contractors is one alternative method of school reform. This document describes some private-management plans and examines some of the central issues. The arrangements between public school systems and three private contractors of education are described--Education Alternatives, Inc. (EAI),…

The goal of this report is to formulate a true alternative to the current form of governance for public education. Based on studies of governance in other large decentralized service organizations and of local educational reform efforts, the report concludes that there is a real alternative. The alternative allows the schools to be operated by a…

Information about two possible actions as followups to school choice is provided in this paper, with attention to the concepts of teachers in private practice and charter schools. The movement of teachers in private practice involves educators as entrepreneurs who contract with school districts. Benefits include a high degree of accountability and…

In this brief, the authors examine the creation, evolution, and expansion of Philadelphia's diverse provider model through the lens of this theory of change; they show that the beliefs and assumptions underlying the diverse provider model have been amended over time; and they illustrate how district and provider leaders have reshaped the model in…

Since the state takeover, the Philadelphia school district has created a new governance model, in which for-profits, non-profits, and universities receive contracts to manage schools. Further, these and other organizations also receive contracts to provide a range of additional services. The shift to a public/private institutional structure,…

Utility services (telecommunications, power, water, and gas) throughout the world were traditionally provided by large, usually state-owned, monopolies. However, encouraged by technological change, regulatory innovation, and pressure from international organizations, many developing countries are privatizing state-owned companies and introducing…

This paper reports the findings from an Internet survey of 2,318 school superintendents across the U.S. The superintendents were asked about their experiences with, views of, and attitudes toward privatization of education services. The results of the survey suggested four conclusions. First, private contracts for a range of educational services…

This book examines the decentralization and privatization of schools in Chile. It analyzes whether the introduction of market mechanisms in the supply of, and demand for, schools enhances educational performance. The text discusses the microeconomic assumptions underlying the proposition that elementary and secondary education could function as a…

Critical to the success of initiatives to reform and restructure educational and community services to improve the lives of children is the way in which they are financed. This report explores the movement toward privatization through contracting in managing, financing, and delivering child and family social services and provides a conceptual…

A survey asked a national random sample of 1,500 school board presidents and the executives of all 1,300 local chambers of commerce for their opinions on charter schools, privatization, and vouchers. Board presidents are likely to support the traditional education establishment. Chamber executives tend to support free-market initiatives for…

Describes access to Canadian government information and compares it to the U.S. depository library system. Topics include the Canadian Depository Service Program, privatization, electronic publications, departmental autonomy, cost recovery for information, government policies, and future possibilities. (LRW)

Both Educational Alternatives Inc. and Baltimore City Schools learned some hard lessons about contracting for educational services and funding politics. Administrators should anticipate conflict; secure community support; establish specific educational objectives, project milestones, funding-linked accountability mechanisms, and a time-frame;…

Describes Wall Street's growing interest in private education companies. Discusses the parallels between the emerging education industry of today and the fledgling health care industry of the 1970s. The acronym EMO (education management organization) is used to categorize companies that manage entire schools. Describes the niches created by the…