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I NSTITUTE

FOR

Page 2

R ESEARCH

ON

E DUCATION P OLICY & P RACTICE

Informing change & promoting innovation through rigorous & collaborative research

Evaluating the Crazy Quilt:

Educational Governance in California

By Dominic Brewer, Professor of Education, Economics, and Policy, Rossier School of Education, University of Southern
California; and Joanna Smith, Siart Research Fellow, Center on Educational Governance, University of Southern California

This study presents a comprehensive picture of educational governance in California and

describes how that structure affects decision making. The questions it explores include:
1. What analytic framework can help policymakers to better understand Californias
complex education governance system?
2. Are there specific indicators of effectiveness that can be used to evaluate
the governance system?
3. What do stakeholders report about the effectiveness of Californias system?
4. How can Californias educational governance system be improved?
Getting Down to Facts
A research project designed
to provide California's policymakers and other education
stakeholders with comprehensive
information about the states
school finance and governance
systems, and lay the groundwork for a conversation about
needed reforms. The project
was made possible by grants
from the Bill & Melinda Gates
Foundation, the William and
Flora Hewlett Foundation,
the James Irvine Foundation,
and the Stuart Foundation.
This summary was prepared
by IREPP.
For the full text of the authors
research report and the other
studies in this project, see:
www.irepp.net

For background on Californias

school finance system, see:
www.californiaschoolfinance.org

Institute for Research on

Education Policy & Practice
520 Galvez Mall, CERAS Building
Rm #518
Stanford, CA 94305
650.736.1258
[email protected]

Summary of Key Findings

Broadly interpreted, governance
includes the institutions that are part
of the educational decision-making
and delivery system, the constituencies
that interact with these institutions,
and the ways the parts of the system
relate to one another. Policies, laws,
regulations, and informal practices
are part of this framework and are
reflected, one way or another, in the
behaviors of all involved. Needless
to say, Californias educational
governance structure is extremely
complex, encompassing many organizational entities: schools; school
districts; and county, state, and
federal agencies. It also involves
thousands of individuals from state
legislators and other policymakers
to school board members, superintendents, principals, and teachers.
The organizational structure is multidimensional, characterized by bodies
that have overlapping responsibilities across executive, legislative, and
judicial jurisdictions.

Study Methods
The study methods included:

A comprehensive review of the research literature on

educational governance, including an overview of systems in other states.

A review of historical documents and reports pertaining

to Californias educational governance system.

An analysis of various aspects of Californias educational governance system from public documents, such
as the California Education Code, historical records
from various agencies, and collective bargaining agreements from a sample of school districts.

Interviews with leading academics across the nation

regarding important aspects of governance and the
work of past scholars.

Interviews with key stakeholders in California at all levels of the education system.

The title of this report comes from the authors interview of

a nationally recognized expert on educational governance
who described Californias system as a remarkably crazy
quilt of interacting authorities that are not aligned for purpose of accountability or action.

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Figure 1 Major Institutions in Californias Educational Governance System

Legislature

State Board of
Education

Governor

Other State
Agencies

Superintendent of
Public Instruction

Secretary of
Education

Unions and Other

Interest Groups

California Department
of Education

Office of Secretary

Other County and

City Agencies

County Board of
Education

Local District Board

of Education

County
Superintendent

Local District
Superintendent

County Office of
Education

District Central
Office

Federal
Government

Schools

School Site
Councils
Teachers

Students and
Parents

Effective governance is necessary

for meeting student outcome goals,
but the relationships are complex
Educational governance arrangements contribute to the overall
effectiveness of a school system.
However, relatively little empirical
research exists on the actual workings of different governance arrangements or why they vary. An
extensive review found only a handful of rigorous research studies that
try to systematically evaluate the
contribution of governance to school
improvement. From this review, the
authors draw two conclusions.
First, governance is an important
determinant of an educational systems effectiveness in meeting its
goals. The evidence suggests that
governance is best thought of as an
enabler that can support other critical elements, such as effective resource use and parental engagement.

Educational Governance in California

March 2007

Second, there is no preferred set

of governance arrangements. The
elements of effective governance
differ from place to place and across
time. Further, the different governance structures interact with one
another. Thus the efficacy of a particular structure depends in large
part on how it fits within the system
as a whole. This makes definitive
statements about what works in
terms of governance very difficult.
Although there is support for a
conclusion that more decentralized
and less regulated governance is
preferable, the specific forms are
not definitively proven.

A framework for understanding

governance structure: the what,
who, and how of governance
Educational governance encompasses many organizations and individuals that interact in highly

complex ways. The authors suggest

using a three-dimensional matrix to
examine the relationship between
the goals or functions, the institutions, and the mechanisms of
governance.
What: The first dimension is what
needs to be done given the goals for
the system. For education, those
include such functions as structure
and organization; finance and business services; human resources/personnel; and educational programs.
Who: The second important dimension is which agency or organization, at what level, will best
perform each of the functions. This
includes organizations and stakeholders at the state, county, district,
and local school level.
How: The third important dimension is what are the best mechanisms
for persuading others to implement
policy. This includes a mix of
mandates, inducements, capacitybuilding, and changes to the system.

Californias governance system centers

on the who
The authors find that California
does not do things based on functionthe what in the framework abovebut rather based on
institution, the who. The essential building blocks of the
California educational governance
system are shown in Figure 1. To
the official state structure, the authors add the federal government
and influential others (most particularly labor unions). For the purposes of analyzing Californias
decision-making structure, the authors divide these institutions into
six general categories: school site,
district, county, state, federal, and
other (e.g., unions).
The authors analyze state documents and interview stakeholders
to examine how authority over
various functions, the what of

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Figure 2 Distribution of Decision-making Authority in California in 2006

The charts below show the relative authority the authors of this study, using a 10-point scale, assigned to each entity within the
various governance functions.

Structure and Organization:

10

The 1985 Commission suggested that, in 1964, power was split

between district and state levels, with some role for counties.
A marginal shift to the state level occurred by 1985, with a
resulting diminution of power at the district level.
Over the past 20 years there have been several changes, but
none has shifted the balance in a consistent direction.
The state has passed
charter school legis10
Site
lation, moved to take
9
District
County
8
over more than one
State
7
school district, and
Federal
6
Other (e.g., Unions)
recently altered the
5
governance of the
4
3
largest school dis2
trict in the state
1
Los Angeles Unified
0
Structure/Organization
School Districtat
the request of the
citys mayor. On the
other hand,
districts
and
counties
still
decide
much
of the organiza10
Site
tional configuration
of
their
districts
schools,
as
well
as having the
District
9
County
authority
to
grant
charters.
8

Level of Authority

Level of Authority

6
5
4
3
2
1
0

Staffing

Training/Professional
Development

Personnel:

Although the state roles in teacher credentialing and preservice

training impose a personnel framework over staff, districts have
significant
decisions through the collec10 leeway over personnel
Site
tive bargaining
process with District
unions. The federal role in these
9
County
matters has
increased through
the highly qualified teacher re8
State
7 of the No Child LeftFederal
quirement
Behind Act (NCLB).
Other (e.g., Unions)
Districts,6 counties, and the state share authority over the train5 10
ing and professional
development of teachers,
with state cateSite
4 9
gorical funding
targeting certain in-serviceDistrict
opportunities.
Level of Authority

County
State
Federal
Other (e.g., Unions)

Educational
2 Programs:

7
As a result
1 of the standards-based reform movement, state currequirements and recommendations have
riculum 0framework
6
Curriculum
influence on Testing/Assessment
local curriculum materials
strong
an increasingly
5
and instructional approaches.
4
While the district retains some control over testing and assess3
ment, NCLBs adequate yearly progress (AYP) requirements
2
have resulted
in a greater federal role at the same time that the
Schools Accountability Act (PSAA) imposes restates Public
1
wards, sanctions,
and interventions based on schools Academic
0
Training/Professional
Performance Index Staffing
(API) results.
Development
The state also sets graduation requirements, and, starting with the
class of 2006, requires most students to pass the California High
School Exit Examination (CAHSEE) to receive a high school diploma.

10
10

Site
District
County
State
Federal
Other (e.g., Unions)

9
8
7
6
5
4
3

8
7
6
5
4
3
2

1
0

Site
District
County
State
Federal
Other (e.g., Unions)

Level of Authority

Since4 Serrano v. Priest court case in 1971 and the passage of Proposition
13 in 31978, the state has had nearly exclusive control over how much income2 for schools is generated and from where. More recently, the fedhas assumed a small amount of authority as well.
eral government
1
10 0 states have gained
While
Site control of resource allocation through
Revenue Generation
Resource Allocation
Facilities
9
District
Planning/Management
an increase in the amount
of categorical compared
with general
County
8
collective bargaining determines much
funding,
district-level State
7
6
about
how the budget Federal
is used
because the bulk of the money
Other
(e.g., Unions)
5
goes
to salaries.
4
planning and management in California has shifted
Facilities
3
over
the
past
40 years such that the federal and state roles have
2
1
shrunk
and the local district role has increased, predominantly
0
through
voter initiatives (Proposition 1A and Proposition 39) and
Structure/Organization
court orders (Williams et al. v. State of California).

Level of Authority

Level of Authority

Level of Authority

Level of Authority

Finance
and Business Services:
5

State
Federal
Other (e.g., Unions)

Site
District
County
State
Federal
Other (e.g., Unions)

0
Revenue Generation

Resource Allocation

Facilities
Planning/Management

Curriculum

March 2007

Testing/Assessment

Educational Governance in California

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governance, is distributed among

the myriad of institutions in
California. Their analysis is organized into four functional areas. (See
Figure 2 on page 3.) They use a 10point system, originally developed
by the 1985 California Commission on School Governance and
Management, to describe the
amount of authority the various institutions have in a given area.

Over time, the states role in educational

governance has become predominant
Along with this analysis of decisionmaking authority in 2006, the authors look at how governance has
changed in California, using the
years 1964 and 1985 as comparison points. They conclude that
many of the trends toward increased state control between 1965
and 1985 have continued. The
state determines much of what
goes on in schools through propositions and legislation. There is evidence that some of the regulation
in the Education Code is superfluous and the result of narrow
interests. In addition, regulatory
directives are used as a policy
instrument more commonly than
inducements. Despite the predominance of state-level influence,
district leaders report that they
have very little direct contact with
personnel at the state level, including the Governor, Legislature,
the Superintendent of Public
Instruction, or the Secretary of
Education.
More recently, the federal government has played an increasingly
important role, particularly in
schools receiving substantial federal
assistance under Title I of NCLB.
Unions also play a major role in resource allocation and staffing. In
this context, school sites have little
authority over most educational
functions.

Educational Governance in California

March 2007

Page 4

Five general indicators provide

context for evaluating the
educational governance
structure in California
The authors focus on five characteristics, which provide a means to
evaluate whether the existing governance structure works well.

Stability
Stability enables actors in the system to act in a rational and planned
way. This is important for the development of expertise and longterm investments in capacity. A
stable governance structure is one
in which policy is made as far in advance of proposed implementation
as is reasonably possible, revenue is
known in advance for planning,
and policies are given an opportunity to work before changes are
made. Stable governance also requires that few major changes of
direction or new initiatives are introduced suddenly and that leaders have
tenures that allow for knowledge development and on-the-job learning.
Interviewees for this study reported that in California revenue
fluctuations are common, the use
of categorical funding has grown
over the past two decades, policy
changes in student assessment and
curriculum increase frustration and
mistrust, and the amount of legislation has increased and is more prescriptive. The authors also report
that staff turnover is more common
at all levels, citing legislative term
limits, State Board of Education
membership, and local leaders as
examples. This increased turnover
reduces the stability of the system.

Accountability
A governance structure with strong
accountability is one in which there
are clear lines of authority between
the various parts of the system, with
limited duplication of functions.

With such a structure, the source of

decisions is known, there are consequences for good/bad behavior and
outcomes, and the actors understand their roles and have incentives
to accomplish the systems goals.
Interviewees observed that the
lines of authority in California were
unclear, due in part to fragmentation
of the system. However, there was
no consensus on who ultimately
should be responsible for education:
some thought control should go
to the Governor, others to the
Superintendent of Public Instruction,
and others to county and district offices. Also, interviewees noted a lack
of alignment between state and federal outcome expectations.

Innovation, Flexibility, and Responsiveness

An innovative, flexible, and responsive governance structure is one
that adapts to changing context and
responds appropriately to new external demands. New approaches
are encouraged, and a variety of
ideas are generated and spread
throughout the system. Innovation,
flexibility, and responsiveness are
essential for a system to adapt to
changing needs and take advantage
of cutting-edge knowledge.
Interviewees reported that in
California, compliance was often
stressed over creativity. Further,
there was criticism of the one-sizefits-all approach as seen in the high
number of categorical funding programs that the state uses (e.g., K3
Class Size Reduction) and in broader
testing and curriculum policies.

Openness and Transparency

Transparency allows for the exchange of information among the
different levels of the governance
system. An open and transparent
system is less likely to be corrupt
and subject to capture by special
interests. Such a system is more

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likely to encourage public engagement and support of schools. An

open and transparent system is one
in which it is clear to the public
how decisions are made and who
makes them. Participation is
encouraged at every level, and
monitoring happens routinely.
Information and evaluation data
flow openly, and there are clear
mechanisms for communicating
performance to citizens.
Interviews revealed that the role
of special interests, particularly the
teachers unions, was the one
major concern in this area. There
was also some perception that the
public lacks awareness of the
functions of each entity within
the governance system.

Simplicity and Efficiency

A simple and efficient governance
structure is one that ensures decisions are made in a timely manner
and with minimal overlap, cost, or
confusion among entities. It is a
structure in which decision making
is located where knowledge is greatest. Policy is coherent, and decisions
across multiple domains and levels
are coordinated, thereby minimizing duplication and waste.
Regarding this dimension, there
was a widespread perception among
interviewees that Californias system

Page 5

is overly complex and fragmented

and that policy is often incoherent.
Those interviewed also emphasized
that complying with the states regulations was overly burdensome and
inefficient.
Based on the foregoing, the authors found that the current system
in California did not rate highly on
any of the five indicators of effective governance.

Authors Conclusions
The authors note that their examination of educational governance in
California revealed a system that
has evolved over time without clear
redefinition of the roles and responsibilities of all the institutions involved. They believe that change is
needed. They report that their interviews provide an indication of the
direction to take, but no agreement
on the details.
First, stakeholders almost universally agreed there was a need to
simplify and clarify the role of the
state and specific institutions at the
state level, particularly in light of
increased accountability. Second,
there was a strong desire to reinforce local control and give
districts greater authority over
more decisions than they currently
have. It was noted that California has overlaid outcomes-based

accountability upon an educational

governance system that was built
on input-based regulatory compliance. In the process, the state has
not given lower-level institutions
the ability to fully manipulate resources to attain the outcomes the
state expects of them.
The authors argue that reforming
Californias educational governance
system can best be accomplished
gradually and should be accompanied
by significant attention to building capacity at the local leveleverything
from school board training to enhanced school budget tools to a
statewide data system that permits
the easy collection and analysis of
data on resources and performance.
Dominic J. Brewer is professor
of education, economics, and policy
at the University of Southern
California. He was previously a
vice president at the RAND Corporation. He received his Ph.D. in labor
economics from Cornell University.
Joanna Smith is the Siart Research
Fellow at the University of Southern
Californias Center on Educational
Governance, where she received her
Ph.D. in education policy in 2004.
This study was completed in
December 2006.

March 2007

Educational Governance in California