Date of Award:

12-2008

Document Type:

Dissertation

Degree Name:

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department:

School of Teacher Education and Leadership

Department name when degree awarded

Curriculum and Instruction

Committee Chair(s)

Scott Hansaker

Committee

Scott Hansaker

Committee

Lisa Boyce

Committee

Gary Carlston

Committee

Barry Franklin

Committee

Rebecca Monhardt

Abstract

The historical perspective of schools in our democratic society provides a framework of tension between local parent and community control versus professional and state control of public school decisions. Today, federal and state requirements demand increased student achievement. The state of Utah requires each public school to have a school community council (SCC) that is responsible for the development of plans for school improvement. Limited funds are provided to each school community council through the School LAND Trust Program to assist in the implementation of the developed plans for the purpose of increased student achievement. Three Utah middlelevel school community councils participated in this qualitative strength-based process evaluation. Two of the SCCs were identified as exemplary and the third SCC was just beginning to function as a new SCC.

The evaluation concludes that the exemplary schools evaluated are compliant with the basic legal requirements, utilize strategies identified in the literature that show the most promise for increasing student achievement, and perceive the implemented programs are having a positive impact on student achievement. Exemplary middle-level SCCs were selected to identify those characteristics and strategies that show the most potential for improving student learning. The themes that emerged in the evaluation related to what works especially well and what concerns arise in the school community council process are: (a) the proper functioning of a school community council is dependent upon generating sufficient interest in participation; (b) the full participation of the council in making important decisions to improve the school served as the foundational source of member confidence; (c) the use of multiple forms of data helped focus deliberations and decisions on student learning; and (d) the mechanisms for communication within the council were strong, but there was a great need to improve communication with the larger school community related to the work of the school community council. In addition, the SCC processes employed at the evaluated schools demonstrated an effective balance between the professional expertise and the democratic involvement in decision-making.

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