{"product_id":"why-school-boards-matter-isbn-9780262552721","title":"Why School Boards Matter","description":"\u003cb\u003eHow school boards are uniquely positioned to strengthen our public education system and our democracy.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn Virginia, a contentious school board meeting led to an arrest and trespassing summons. In Utah, eleven people were charged with disorderly conduct after a board meeting turned chaotic. Not long ago, school boards conducted mundane district business. Understudied and underreported, they were an afterthought of centrally driven education reform efforts. Now, across blue, purple, and red states, school boards have become the epicenter of heated debates, reflecting society’s deep divisions. In \u003ci\u003eWhy School Boards Matter\u003c\/i\u003e, Scott Levy challenges conventional wisdom by reminding us of the essential role school boards play.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhile battles in the boardroom may be uncomfortable, they exemplify how passionate Americans are about education. As policymakers debate the federal government’s role in K-12 and states pursue sharply divergent policies, Levy offers a roadmap that empowers school boards to tackle intractable public education challenges, including initiative fatigue, district climate, and accountability. School boards are where theory meets practice, where federal and state requirements converge with local policies, and where constituents can advocate for important issues affecting our children today. Every K-12 stakeholder—administrators, teachers, parents, and students alike—has a vested interest in understanding how school boards shape education.Contents\u003cbr\u003ePreface\u003cbr\u003eIntroduction\u003cbr\u003ePart I: Battles in the Boardroom\u003cbr\u003e1 Echoes of the Past\u003cbr\u003e2 Erosion of Trust\u003cbr\u003e3 The Fishbowl\u003cbr\u003e4 Blurry Lines\u003cbr\u003e5 Searching for a Ceasefire\u003cbr\u003ePart II: The Case for School Boards\u003cbr\u003e6 From Wall Street to a School Board Seat\u003cbr\u003e7 Initiative Fatigue\u003cbr\u003e8 District Climate\u003cbr\u003e9 Engagement with the Community\u003cbr\u003e10 Accountability\u003cbr\u003e11 Short-Termism\u003cbr\u003ePart III: Our Shared Responsibility\u003cbr\u003e12 Strengthening School Boards\u003cbr\u003e13 Beyond Education\u003cbr\u003eAcknowledgments\u003cbr\u003eNotes\u003cbr\u003eIndex\"Thoughtful, earnest, well-researched… Levy offers a dozen worthy suggestions for improving the functioning as well as the span of control of local school boards: curbing state and federal interference, recruiting stronger candidates to run, providing better training for those who win, improving relations with the superintendent, and much more.\"\u003cbr\u003e—\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eEducation Next\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Scott Levy’s \u003ci\u003eWhy School Boards Matter\u003c\/i\u003e is a vital, timely reminder of local democracy’s importance, offering practical insights for anyone invested in reclaiming our nation’s public education promise amid today’s turbulent political landscape.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—David R. Schuler, Ph.D., Executive Director, AASA, The School Superintendents Association\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“School boards are the heart of American education, but we know almost nothing about them. Drawing upon his own experience as a board member, Scott R. Levy has written our first reliable guide to these venerable but neglected institutions.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Jonathan Zimmerman, Professor of History of Education, University of Pennsylvania\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Scott Levy provides a timely reminder of the important role of boards of education in modeling civil discourse and strengthening American democracy. Readers will benefit from the insights into effective board governance.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e—Patrice McCarthy, Executive Director and General Counsel, Connecticut Association of Boards of Education\u003c\/b\u003eScott Levy is Adjunct Lecturer at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. He has been elected four times to a local public school board in Westchester County, NY, and has served as president of a regional school boards association. He has also served as chairman of a children's hospital and Executive Director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. He spent two decades as an investment banker advising corporate boards and senior executives.","brand":"The MIT Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48233856729317,"sku":"NP9780262552721","price":35.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780262552721.jpg?v=1767744279","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/why-school-boards-matter-isbn-9780262552721","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}