Since 1995, the Donors' Education Collaborative (DEC) has supported a range of groups--advocacy, organizing, research and policy groups--who advocate for, or whose members come from, diverse constituencies concerned about public education in New York City (NYC). DEC has also encouraged collaborations among these types of groups to leverage their influence on education policy at the Department of Education (DoE), city and state levels. The groups, consisting of youth, parents and community leaders, operate in all five NYC boroughs. In December 2007, DEC provided a planning grant to the Alliance for Quality Education (AQE), with the understanding that in collaboration with the Coalition for Educational Justice (CEJ), the Community Involvement Project of the Annenberg Institute for School Reform (CIP), and the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC), they would design a campaign to ensure that a wide range of parent and community voices were part of any public discussion of the future of mayoral control. Following six months of planning, these initiating groups received a DEC grant to build a broader collaborative that would mobilize parents, youth and community members to participate in the mayoral control debate, with the hope that their voices would help inform the forthcoming mayoral control legislation. The grant period extended from July 1, 2008 through June 30, 2009, the date for sunset of the state legislation that initially established mayoral control of NYC schools. This grant provided DEC with an opportunity to take a fresh look at the impact its grant making strategy was having on the broader NYC educational policy environment. DEC invited Research for Action, working in collaboration with Professor Jeffrey Henig of Teachers College, to evaluate the initiative for that purpose. The evaluation has been conducted in two parts. A Year One Report, covering the period May 2008-May 2009, focused on the political environment in which the Campaign emerged, how Campaign members worked jointly to create a platform for making changes to mayoral control, their success in gaining visibility and legitimacy for their positions, and the role of DEC's funding in building the capacity of the Campaign to be a player in the mayoral control debate. The Year Two Report covers May 2009-May 2010 and continues the story of the Campaign and its impacts both on the NYC school governance legislation and on the city's long-term educational and civic environment. Appended are: (1) Fieldwork and Data Analyzed; (2) Campaign Initiating Groups; (3) Campaign for Better Schools Steering Committee; and (4) Final Campaign Platform. (Contains 6 figures and 67 footnotes.).

Since 1995, the Donors' Education Collaborative (DEC) has supported a range of groups--advocacy, organizing, research and policy groups--that advocate for, or have members from, diverse constituencies concerned about public education in New York City (NYC). DEC has also encouraged collaborations among these types of groups to leverage their influence on education policy at city and state levels. The groups, consisting of youth, parents and community leaders, operate in all five NYC boroughs. Some focus solely on education issues, while others have multi-issue agendas. They include groups representing African Americans, Asian-Americans and Latinos, as well as a range of immigrant and refugee populations. In anticipation of the June 2009 sunset of mayoral control of the NYC schools, and the passing of new legislation that would maintain, change or end mayoral control, DEC sought to encourage a robust public debate about school governance. In late 2007, DEC funded the Alliance for Quality Education (AQE) to plan with the Coalition for Educational Justice (CEJ), the Community Involvement Project of the Annenberg Institute for School Reform (CIP), and the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) for a partnership that would develop a coalition to bring a public voice to the school governance debate. In Spring 2008, following the initiating groups' planning process, DEC invited Research for Action, working in collaboration with Professor Jeffrey Henig of Teachers College, to evaluate the implementation and impact of the coalition they would build on the debate and the outcomes, as well as on the broader NYC educational policy environment. This Executive Summary covers the findings of the two-year study period, May 2008 through May 2010. The overall question that the study seeks to answer is: In what ways does DEC's sustained investment in advocacy, organizing, research and policy groups that include and advocate for minority and immigrant families contribute to a broader public understanding and a richer, more informed and more democratically responsive debate about NYC school governance and policies? The authors raise this question in the context of the significance of--civic capacity for the sustainability of school reform. A community with civic capacity is one in which groups work across sectors to identify a shared agenda and to mobilize the human and financial resources required to forward that agenda. Considerable research has suggested that school districts in cities in which significant civic capacity is present are those in which reforms are most likely to be sustainable. Thus, the report examines the impact of DEC's funding in terms of whether the coalition, called the Campaign for Better Schools, succeeded in its policy goals, but also draws conclusions about whether DEC funding has advanced the longer term development and sustainability of a collaborative and effective civic sector engaged in an ongoing role in school reform. An interdisciplinary team of researchers used a qualitative research approach employing multiple methods of data collection, including an examination of public opinion polls; a media scan; and extensive fieldwork with a broad range of policy makers and observers, and political actors, including Campaign members as well as other education advocates and activists. (Contains 2 figures.).

This is the second evaluation of the Donors' Education Collaborative's (DEC) grant making since its founding in 1995. The first evaluation was a cross-case study of three projects that embodied DEC's theory of action: lasting systemic school reform demands sustained funding to build organizational collaboration that simultaneously broadens and deepens constituencies and employs strategies to effect policy change. This second evaluation follows the building of a multi-organization coalition focused on influencing a crosscutting issue--school governance--that has a powerful effect on the school reform work of each of the participating groups. Four DEC grantees, the Alliance for Quality Education (AQE), the Coalition for Educational Justice (CEJ), the Community Involvement Project of the Annenberg Institute for School Reform (CIP) and the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) are instrumental in this initiative. Because these groups have been DEC grantees previously, this effort provides an excellent opportunity to explore whether and how DEC's sustained support generates long-term benefits that accumulate over time. This evaluation can contribute further knowledge about DEC's strategy of sustained grant making and its focus on public engagement to foster systemic school reform. (Contains 2 figures and 21 footnotes.).

Strengthen programs of family and community engagement to promote equity and increase student success! When schools, families, and communities collaborate and share responsibility for students′ education, more students succeed in school. Based on 30 years of research and fieldwork, the fourth edition of the bestseller School, Family, and Community Partnerships: Your Handbook for Action, presents tools and guidelines to help develop more effective and more equitable programs of family and community engagement. Written by a team of well-known experts, it provides a theory and framework of six types of involvement for action; up-to-date research on school, family, and community collaboration; and new materials for professional development and on-going technical assistance. Readers also will find: Examples of best practices on the six types of involvement from preschools, and elementary, middle, and high schools Checklists, templates, and evaluations to plan goal-linked partnership programs and assess progress CD-ROM with slides and notes for two presentations: A new awareness session to orient colleagues on the major components of a research-based partnership program, and a full One-Day Team Training Workshop to prepare school teams to develop their partnership programs. As a foundational text, this handbook demonstrates a proven approach to implement and sustain inclusive, goal-linked programs of partnership. It shows how a good partnership program is an essential component of good school organization and school improvement for student success. This book will help every district and all schools strengthen and continually improve their programs of family and community engagement.

Some of the most populated and storied American cities had mayoral elections in 2013. Open contests in New York City, Los Angeles and Boston, for example, offer laboratories to examine electoral trends in urban politics. Cities are facing varied predicaments. Boston was rocked by the bombing of the marathon on April 15. Detroit is roiled by being the largest U.S. city to declare bankruptcy, and Chicago, which had an open, competitive election in 2011, is dealing with significant gun violence. San Diego’s mayor resigned in August 2013 due to sexual harassment charges and other mayors are surrounded by corruption scandals. Houston and St. Louis had non-competitive elections recently but their mayors are notable for their tenure in office and emphasis will be on public policy outcomes in those cases. Leaders in most cities face dramatic changes and challenges due to economic and social realities. The Keys to City Hall offers a complete and succinct review and analysis of the top mayoral campaigns in major American cities in recent years as well as the politics and public policy management of those urban areas. Emerging theories of urban governance, demographic changes, and economic conditions are examined in introductory chapters; the introduction will provide a unique and comprehensive focus on major trends in advertisement, changes in campaign strategies, fundraising, and the use of social media at the local level. In Part Two, scholars with expertise in local politics, urban public policy, and the governance explore some of the largest and most noteworthy U.S. cities, each of which has a recent, competitive mayoral election. They will also provide updated data on mayoral powers and problems faced by local executives. Written as lively narratives in a highly readable style, this book advances theory on urban politics by reviewing developments in the field and aligning theoretical approaches with realities on the ground based on the most recent elections and governance structures. As such, it will be a much needed resource to scholars interested in local politics, and the public policy debates of specific major urban and metropolitan areas.

Over the past fifty years, the “special status” of education decision-making has been eroded. Once the province of local and state school boards, decisions about schools and schooling have begun to emerge in every level and branch of government. In The End of Exceptionalism in American Education, Jeffrey R. Henig traces the roots of this tectonic shift in school governance. Carefully reasoned, astutely observed, and thoughtfully presented, this volume promises to become a classic work in our understanding of education policy—and an invaluable resource for those seeking to influence its future trajectory.