Public K–12 Education Policy: Analyses of Stakeholder Equity and Power in School Closing Decisions

• In Event: 30.023 - Examining Power Dynamics in Schools

Abstract

This paper takes a critical look at urban public k-12 school closing policy implementation with regards to stakeholder power, authority, and voice in decision-making. School closures are often justified due to budgetary crisis, claimed necessary to eliminate large financial deficits (Broad Foundation School Closure Guide, 2009) and touted as a strategy for school improvement (Fine, 2012). Using accountability language in school board meetings, students and families are collateral damage as privatized entities erase schools (Aggarwal, et al, 2012; Fine, 2012; Patel, 2012). This conceptual paper proposes research to examine multiple stakeholder experiences and engagement in school closing decision-making processes from varying levels of power through the lens of accumulation by dispossession theories (Harvey, 2008; Fine & Ruglis, 2009).

Author

• Kimberley J Williams, University of Massachusetts - Boston