This article provides commentary that focuses on school-parent relations in Australia through exploration of schools in the state of Victoria across three aspects: school-parent partnership, parental involvement in the governance of schools, and parental involvement in school accountability processes. Parental involvement is typically at a level…

In the past, school and college administrators relied heavily on advice from colleagues, largely because they had an internal orientation toward their work. As the social, political, and economic influence of external forces became more apparent, they learned to value input from a range of stakeholders. Robert Taft, former governor of Ohio, is a…

As the current president of National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP), Barbara Chester has the responsibility of representing the organization's members in their efforts as advocates for children. Principal Chester's answers to the interview questions reflect the challenges facing schools and the role that principals need to…

This article presents a transcript of a recent interview with Jana Frieler, 2010-2011 president of the National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP). Ms. Frieler has been in education for 26 years, 16 of those in administration. For the past 6 years, she has been with the Cherry Creek School District, most recently as principal of…

From returning phone calls to traversing the political landscape to building trust, American Association of School Administrators (AASA) president Mark Bielang covers a lot of territory as he describes the public relations challenges confronting today's school administrators. Having just concluded his term as AASA president, Mr. Bielang has served…

In December 2004, the "Amarillo Globe News" reported on a "Dallas Morning News" story that analyzed state-mandated test scores from across Texas (Benton & Hacker, 2004; Wilson, 2004). According the "Amarillo Globe News," "the Dallas Morning News" study implicated Sunrise Elementary School, in Amarillo, Texas, by labeling their Texas assessment of…

In the aftermath of several tragic incidents of school violence, school administrators began focusing more directly on crisis management. Those who actually had to activate their plans often discovered that communication--with the media and with the general community--was one of the most challenging tasks they faced. In an effort to determine if…

Throughout Texas, enrollments in suburban school districts have been rising, and in some instances, the increases have been substantial. Causes of this demographic trend are multifaceted, but in most instances they are an intricate mix of state population growth and urban flight. Rapidly growing suburban districts, like all Texas districts,…

The "Brown v. Board of Education" of 50 years ago was perhaps the most significant school reform implemented in American education. The goal of this landmark decision was to end public school segregation and introduce racially integrated schools. Now in the 21st century and clearly in the shadows of this decision, we argue that the hope and…