Sarah Sharkey

EDUL #637 Final Paper

7/19/2015

Introduction
Every citizen of the United States holds a civic responsibility to become involved
in some aspect of the government. This may be as simple as voting, or as involved as
running for office. When it comes to the world of education, politics impacts everyday
decisions and often dictates the way things need to be done. While there are many
examples of this, the most important part is to realize there are ways to make a difference
in our local schools even though there are so many outside forces impacting education.
As a school leader, it is important to communicate ways local citizens can become
involved in our childrens education. As educators, we often tell one another, You know
your students and what is best for them. Our communities do as well. Without their
input, our students would be prepared for a future through means that may not make
sense for all children. There are various models of schools that are very successful in
some parts of the country, and in others different models show success. Each community
is unique, and having the involvement of local citizens helps shape that unique education
that helps our children become successful citizens themselves.
School
When planning a vacation, a traveller must choose a destination. Once that step
has been complete, it is vital to assess the best means to arrive at that destination. Should
it be by car, boat, train, or airplane? Perhaps walking or biking is even possible. A map is

a vital tool when making this assessment. Without it, the traveller could easily get lost or
sidetracked, and perhaps forget about the original destination. When it comes to schools,
the vision is the destination and the mission acts as the map.
As a school leader, one must establish vision and mission statements in relation to
the actual reality of the school situation. Simply speaking, they will revolve around
student achievement. It becomes more complicated when the school leader recognizes the
unique needs the school may have when it comes to student achievement. Therefore, the
statements for each school will look different with a similar emphasis. This needs to be a
priority for every school in order to drive the decision making process and ensure
everyone involved in student outcomes works toward the same goal.
While it can be easy to write a few words and label it vision and mission, the
process is actually very involved. First and foremost, the school leader must remember to
gather input from a variety of sources and points of view. This is key in gaining buy-in
from all members of the community. Developing surveys, focus groups, study circles, and
large group events allow for opportunities to gain insight from many constituents
(Chadwick, 2004, p. 57). As the school leader continues through the process, a
communication plan should be developed to update community members about the
progress toward the end goal. Once the vision and mission are collectively written, goals
and core values can be determined. Finally, this can all be put together in to a long-term
Strategic Plan in order to align all arrows to point toward the same overall goal.

Community
As mentioned earlier, the school leader needs to involve many members of the
community to gather varying opinions about the ultimate goal for the school. Just as a
customer will research a product using multiple sources prior to making a large purchase,
so must a school leader research the school through multiple sources to determine the
best end goal for the school. While this can be a very time consuming process, it is one
that is well worth the effort in the long run. The more involved a person can be in a
decision making process, the more likely he or she will be to support the end product,
even if it differs from the constituents original opinion.
When determining the involvement of various constituents, it is important to
remember to involve a large variety throughout the process. One can begin to determine
these by viewing people as external and internal publics. Since the internal public comes
from within the school, such as teachers, food service employees, and janitorial staff, they
may be more likely to offer an educational point of view on the progress of the school.
The external public, which involves families, businesses, religious organizations, service
agencies, the media, and higher education institutions, will provide information beyond
the walls of the traditional educational experience typically provided in todays schools.
Both areas will express opinions that will hold a lot of value throughout the process, even
though they may seem to come from completely different worlds. This works due to the
fact that there is one end thought in mind: to improve student achievement.
In order to make change happen, the people involved in the process must
understand the need for change. If a doctor tells the patient about a new health concern,
the patient is likely to change something in order to eliminate the concern. The patient

would not change anything if he or she were unaware there was a problem. In the case of
our schools, the school leader must establish a sense of urgency in order to initiate
change. This could be done a variety of ways.
Creating a State of the School assessment can be a great place to begin. The
school leader would utilize the internal and external publics, as well as any data provided
to gain an understanding of the historical perspective, trends, resources and current status
of public relations of the school. This information can be gathered from the community
utilizing the strategies discussed earlier. Once obtained, the information can be combined
with the current realities of the school to paint a large picture of where the school stands
now. The State of the School should be communicated to the external and internal
publics. This shows the need for change and should initiate interest in creating a vision of
the ideal state of the school.
A key in establishing and carrying out an effective vision and mission statement
lies in the professional relationships created between the school and members of the
community. Words written on a piece of paper mean nothing if there is no support for
those words. Collaboration and involvement in carrying out the statements boost the rate
for success. Each stakeholder will contribute to the vision and mission in different ways.
When the pieces of support from school staff, families, businesses, religious
organizations, political organizations, service agencies, the media, and higher education
institutions comes together, the vision and mission statements will act as the completed
puzzle.
Maintaining these relationships takes time and effort. While focus groups,
surveys, study circles, and large group forums help, the primary effort should be placed in

communication. This can include a website that includes the overall process and updates
along the way. It may also include other digital communication tools, such as Facebook,
Twitter, and blogs. Submitting updates to the school district newsletter and even the local
newspaper can spread the word about the important and positive work being done at the
school.

State
Due to the omission of education in the constitution, the states hold the
responsibility for establishing and maintaining public schools. While the purpose of
education could be argued, public schools were initially established in support of
economic outcomes (Spring, 2011, p. 199). This still holds true today. If there is one thing
both liberal and conservative ideologies agree on is the Human Capital Ideology, where
the primary goal of education is economic growth (Spring, 2011, p. 7, 11).
Local and state governments collect taxes to apply to public schools. This affects
every taxpayer, not only the ones with school-aged children. Since the schools are based
on the Human Capital Ideology, it can be argued that everyone benefits. This helps create
support for schools throughout the entire community. The hope would be for an economic
impact at multiple levels, including locally, nationally, and globally. While there are
concerns when it comes to this particular ideology, it is one that the general public can
easily support.
Since communities can be convinced relatively easily that public schools are a
great part of society due to the Human Capital Ideology, the general public needs to know
how to support local schools. There needs to be communication regarding the set-up of

local governance, whether it is through a school board or mayoral control. Information

about the happenings in the schools as well as open community events can help the
general public become more involved in the schools as well. At the state level, voters
need to be informed of representatives views on educational policy and how those views
affect schools. Tuning into local and social media can raise awareness of educational
issues raised at the state level so the public can determine a course of action if concerns
arise. Most importantly, the public must remember that student achievement should be
the top priority in all local schools.

National
While the Federal Government does not constitutionally hold much power when it
comes to public schools, it does have influence. Laws and decisions made through federal
lawmakers or the Supreme Court trickles down into schools. An example of this would be
the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act of 2004. This law comes from the federal
level, and requires public schools to offer a free appropriate public education to all
children.
Oftentimes federal influence is linked to federal funding of programs. In the
example of the recent Race to the Top as part of the federal stimulus package, states could
apply for funds to provide money for public schools in exchange for following specific
guidelines set by the law. While most states jumped at the opportunity, a few chose not to,
and therefore do not need to comply with the guidelines found in the law. Overall, the
effect the Federal Government had on educational reform is undeniable, and overall

viewed as a positive step towards making improvements in education (Spring, 2011, p.

67).
The shadow government is another indirect influence on public schools. This
influence comes through in two ways money and studies. The more money the
foundation or think tank provides, the more it will impact the educational system. Many
shadow government institutions promote research and studies on educational practices,
however these are often slanted. In 1970, few think tanks were identified as liberal or
conservative. The number has grown greatly between then and 1996 (Spring, 2011, p.
103). In the end, those involved in the shadow government systems lobby for action that
aligns with the institutions values on education.
The shadow government also includes for-profit educational services, such as
businesses offering supplemental tutoring. These efforts are an option for schools to
utilize due to the inclusion of for-profit services in No Child Left Behind. Often these
businesses are founded and/or supported by foundations and think tanks. For-profit
educational services efforts are enhanced through franchising the business. Thus it is
larger and more recognizable to the public and more influential on government policies.
School leaders need to recognize the influence of the shadow government and review the
policies and services with a critical eye.

Global

Since public schools are built around the Human Capital Ideology, it makes sense
that we can use our schools as a tool to prepare students for a global economy. The
quality of schools in the United States today correlates to the countrys standing in
economic competition worldwide in the future. A few things have happened in recent
years that contribute to this push for global competition. First, English became the official
language of commerce. This gives the United States an edge over other countries since
the culture is already based on the English language.
Second, the use of common international standardized tests ranks the education
systems of participating countries based on various scores, such as math, science. The
student success on international tests may impact standards and curriculum in our local
public schools. As global education policies become more important, the control of public
schools moves farther away from local communities (Spring, 2011, p. 243). This ends up
creating a top-down approach in the decision-making process affecting schools.
Brain Gain and Brain Drain is another impact global competition has on
countries. Many developing countries find ways to invest in higher education (and
education in general) so citizens will help the local economy once employment is
obtained. This plan often backfires, though, because many graduates move to nearby
countries that may have better living and working conditions. The country that invested
in the education not only loses out on the money that individual could have brought from
finding employment in his or her home country, but also on the cost of education. The
developing country has a brain drain, while the country the individual moved to benefits
from a brain gain.

Locally, school leaders can help retain students that our system has invested in by
creating partnerships with local businesses and community organizations to create a
connection between education and work prior to graduation. There are many examples of
manufacturing businesses that partner with local school districts to create a program that
allows a hands-on education that applies to both meeting school benchmarks and training
for potential future employees with that company. The more businesses create a
connection with students prior to graduation, the more students will become invested in
the business and may consider staying in the area. This helps the local economy as new
graduates live, work, shop, dine, and invest in the area.

Conclusion
Though education has many political forces driving down upon it, school leaders
and communities can still make an impact on improving student achievement.
Collaboration and communication are the keys to making positive changes that will have
lasting effects on children and communities. Bringing together all stakeholders for the
sake of student improvement will make a strong and lasting impact on the community
that can have a domino effect and impact the state, nation, and world. While it can be
challenging at times, providing a voice to those directly and indirectly involved in public
schools gives insight and drives the change needed to create success. Every voice has an
opinion about public schools. As school leaders we must take the time to listen and utilize
those opinions to help lift up our schools for the future.

References
Spring, J. (2011). The Politics of American Education. New York, NY: Routledge.
Chadwick, K. G. (2004). Improving Schools through Community Engagement. New York,
NY: Skyhorse Publishing.