scholarly journals Factors that Influence School Choice: A Look at Parents’ and School Leaders’ Perceptions

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-41
Author(s):  
Nereyda Cantu ◽  
Daniella G. Varela ◽  
Don Jones ◽  
Linda Challoo
Keyword(s):  
Public School ◽  
School Districts ◽  
School Choice ◽  
Customer Service ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
Student Enrollment ◽  
District Leaders ◽  
School District Leaders ◽  
Positive School Culture ◽  
New Students

School choice is a growing movement, and public school districts are faced with the challenge of preventing declines in student enrollment.  In response, school districts must work to retain enrolled students and at the same time, attract new students. This qualitative study focused on developing an understanding of the factors that influence parents’ decisions to enroll their child(ren) in a chosen school, that is, a school which differs from that assigned to the student, also known as school choice.  This case study examined data from the perspectives and experiences of parents and public school district leaders. Results suggest that school leaders need to ensure they build good relationships with parents and keep a positive school culture where customer service is valued and held to the highest standards.  In essence, school leaders must maintain strong partnerships with their families to attract and retain student enrollment. The results from this study equip school leaders with valuable information for strategic planning to address declines in student enrollment.

Teacher Layoffs: An Empirical Illustration of Seniority versus Measures of Effectiveness

2011 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 439-454 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald Boyd ◽  
Hamilton Lankford ◽  
Susanna Loeb ◽  
James Wyckoff
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Public Schools ◽  
School Districts ◽  
Teacher Effectiveness ◽  
District Leaders ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
School District Leaders ◽  
Alternative Approaches ◽  
Teacher Layoffs ◽  
Measures Of Effectiveness

School districts are confronting difficult choices in the aftermath of the financial crisis. Today, the financial imbalance in many school districts is so large that there may be few alternatives to teacher layoffs. In nearly all school districts, layoffs are currently determined by some version of teacher seniority. Yet, alternative approaches to personnel reductions may substantially reduce the harm to students from staff reductions relative to layoffs based on seniority. As a result, many school district leaders and other policy makers are raising important questions about whether~other criteria, such as measures of teacher effectiveness, should inform layoffs. This policy brief, a quick look at some aspects of the debate, illustrates the differences in New York City public schools that would result if layoffs were determined by seniority in comparison to a measure of teacher effectiveness.

scholarly journals Some pennies are more equal than others: Inequitable school facilities investment in San Antonio, Texas

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
pp. 16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marialena D. Rivera ◽  
Sonia Rey Lopez
Keyword(s):  
School District ◽  
School Districts ◽  
School Finance ◽  
San Antonio ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Educational Facilities ◽  
District Leaders ◽  
School District Leaders ◽  
Property Wealth ◽  
State And Local

In Texas, local taxpayers fund the majority of educational facilities construction and maintenance costs, with local wealth influencing facilities outcomes. The traditional school districts that comprise the predominantly Latino and segregated San Antonio area vary considerably in property wealth as well as district capacity and expertise. We conducted an analysis of 12 San Antonio area school districts to address the questions: 1) To what extent do state and local investments vary by district? 2) How do district actions and constraints affect facilities quality and equitable investment? Methods include descriptive quantitative analysis of facilities investment data and qualitative interviews with school district leaders, staff, and school finance experts. Examining Texas school finance data demonstrated the variance in school district investments in educational facilities. Despite some districts with lower property wealth exerting higher levels of tax effort, they were able to raise less money per student for educational facilities through interest and sinking taxes. Interview findings revealed that several districts acknowledge lacking the capacity to maintain high-quality facilities for all students. Respondents frequently criticized current state policies and funding for educational facilities as inadequate, inequitable, and inefficient and expressed a need for policy improvements in an era of increasing state disinvestment.

scholarly journals Student Population Change in Rural Illinois Schools and Its Implications for School Leaders

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian C. Kinkley ◽  
John T. Yun
Keyword(s):  
Educational Leadership ◽  
Public School ◽  
Common Core ◽  
Population Change ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
Secondary Analysis ◽  
Demographic Characteristics ◽  
Student Population ◽  
Student Enrollment ◽  
Illinois Schools

This paper examines rural public school student population change in Illinois and explores the implications of these changes on educational leadership. Secondary analysis of 16 years of data from NCES Common Core of Data Universe Surveys illuminates population change in terms of student enrollment and demographic characteristics. Findings suggest that these changes have occurred over the 16 year period and present potentially considerable challenges for school leaders especially given the broader state climate.

Principals and District Leaders Navigating the Marketplace: Lessons From Texas, New York, and Pennsylvania

2020 ◽  
pp. 105268462091621
Author(s):  
Stephen Kotok ◽  
Catherine DiMartino ◽  
David E. DeMatthews
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
School Choice ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Community Outreach ◽  
The United States ◽  
District Leaders ◽  
Preparation Programs ◽  
School District Leaders ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
Mexico Border

Due to the growth of school choice across the United States as well as declining enrollment in some districts, schools are experiencing increasing competition for students. As a result, principals and school district leaders in high-choice districts are now expected to develop strategies such as branding, marketing, and community outreach to attract and retain students. Yet, there is a lack of literature exploring whether principals and district leaders are prepared to navigate these competitive spaces effectively, ethically, and equitably. Our study examines how principals and district leaders experience competition as well as their perspectives and practices in terms of marketing their school. In order to understand this complex process, we juxtapose theoretical perspectives on family and community partnerships with more mainstream market theories and critiques. We then apply these frameworks on three unique cases along the Texas–Mexico border, a low-income area of New York City, and rural Pennsylvania. Data were collected primarily through interviews with principals, superintendents, and other district leaders. We find that in all three cases, principals and district leaders felt they had to engage in marketing practices. Yet, some principals clearly embraced market-based rhetoric while others viewed strong community engagement as a means for maintaining enrollment. The three cases also reveal critical equity issues regarding principal experience, district support, and preexisting market hierarchies. We conclude with a discussion considering how districts can create equitable conditions for marketing and how leadership preparation programs can prepare principals and school leaders to work ethically and effectively in competitive spaces.

Recruiting “Talent”: School Choice and Teacher Hiring in New Orleans

2017 ◽  
Vol 54 (1) ◽  
pp. 115-151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huriya Jabbar
Keyword(s):  
School Choice ◽  
Hurricane Katrina ◽  
New Orleans ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
Teacher Hiring ◽  
District Leaders ◽  
Teacher Labor Market ◽  
Decentralized System ◽  
Recruiting Teachers

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine school leaders’ preferences and practices in an environment of widespread decentralization, privatization, and school choice. In New Orleans, such reforms have been enacted citywide since Hurricane Katrina, making it an ideal site to examine what happens when policy makers lift restrictions for school leaders—and remove protections for teachers—related to teacher hiring on a large scale. Research Methods/Approach: In this exploratory study, I analyze qualitative data to examine school leaders’ preferences and practices when recruiting teachers in New Orleans. The data for the study come from 94 interviews with principals, district leaders, and charter network leaders. Findings: School leaders had different conceptions of “talent” and “fit,” and used a variety of strategies to recruit teachers. School districts and charter networks both supported and constrained school leaders’ autonomy and recruitment practices by screening applicants or setting guidelines and criteria. Other intermediary organizations also played a role in shaping the teacher labor market. School choice also posed unique challenges for teacher recruitment. Implications: Overall, expansive choice policies in New Orleans appear to foster flexibility and variation in teacher hiring strategies (although not in salary), as expected in a decentralized system. However, these policies and strategies appear also to have other consequences, including greater instability or “churn,” unpredictability, and a bifurcated teaching force.

scholarly journals Multiple choice: How public school leaders in New Orleans's saturated market view private school competitors

2016 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 94 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huriya Jabbar ◽  
Dongmei Li
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Public School ◽  
School Choice ◽  
Private Schools ◽  
Private School ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
School Competition ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Public School Choice ◽  
The Impact

School choice policies, such as charter schools and vouchers, are in part designed to induce competition between schools. While several studies have examined the impact of private school competition on public schools, few studies have explored school leaders’ perceptions of private school competitors. This study examines the extent to which public school leaders in New Orleans, which already has a robust public school choice system, perceived competition with private schools, and the characteristics that predicted competition between the two types of schools. We find that while over half of principals reported competing with private schools for students, there was a wide range of the number and percentage of possible competitors reported. Furthermore, the results suggest that school voucher policies did not play a major role in influencing why schools competed with private schools. In addition, public school leaders who did lose students to private schools through the voucher program reported that they often recouped those losses, when parents returned to public schools unsatisfied or facing additional unexpected costs. 

Leaders’ experiences in Arizona’s mature education market

2019 ◽  
Vol 57 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda U. Potterton
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Public School ◽  
School Choice ◽  
Charter Schools ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Education Market ◽  
Policies And Programs ◽  
Mature Market

Purpose In Arizona’s mature, market-based school system, we know little about how school leaders make meaning of school choice policies and programs on the ground. Using ethnographic methods, the author asked: How do school leaders in one Arizona district public school and in its surrounding community, which includes a growing number of high-profile and “high-performing” Education Management Organisation (EMO) charter schools, make meaning of school choice policies and programs? The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach The author analysed 18 months of qualitative fieldnotes that the author collected during participant observations and six semi-structured school leader interviews from both traditional district public schools in the area (n=4) and leaders from EMO charter schools (n=2). Findings School leaders’ decision-making processes were influenced by competitive pressures. However, perceptions of these pressures and leadership actions varied widely and were complicated by inclusive and exclusive social capital influences from stakeholders. District public school leaders felt pressure to package and sell schools in the marketplace, and charter leaders enjoyed the notion of markets and competition. Practical implications As market-based policies and practices become increasingly popular in the USA and internationally, a study that examines leaders’ behaviours and actions in a long-standing school choice system is timely and relevant. Originality/value This study uniquely highlights school leaders’ perceptions and actions in a deeply embedded education market, and provides data about strategies and behaviours as they occurred.

scholarly journals Deal or No Deal? The Effects of Deregulation on Public School Leaders’ Support for Private School Choice in California

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (16) ◽  
Author(s):  
Corey A. DeAngelis ◽  
Lindsey M. Burke
Keyword(s):  
Public Schools ◽  
Public School ◽  
School Choice ◽  
Private School ◽  
School Leaders ◽  
Adjustment Costs ◽  
School Vouchers ◽  
Unexpected Result ◽  
Regulatory Capture ◽  
School Voucher

Public school leaders might be more likely to support private school voucher programs if they are enacted alongside public school deregulations. We use a survey experiment to examine the effects of public school deregulations on actual public school leaders’ support for a hypothetical private school voucher program in California. We do not find evidence to suggest that public school deregulations affect public school leaders’ support for private school vouchers overall. However, we unexpectedly find that deregulations related to teacher certification and administration of standardized tests further decrease support for private school choice for leaders of large public schools. This unexpected result may be explained by expected adjustment costs or regulatory capture.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document