The School Administrator

Jan 08 Cover

January 2008 Number 1, Vol. 65 Healthy Bodies, Well Minds A district's attack on obesity and its connection to learning

Features

Profile

    Changing Faces Except in the Superintendent's Chair by Paul Riede


    The landscape in Springdale, Ark., has shifted dramatically over two decades for Superintendent Jim Rollins. The population of non-English speakers has exploded in his community.read more

    Departments

    Punchback: Answering Critics

    School Choice Doesn't Deliver What it Promises by E. Joseph Schneider


    Charter schools are sold as a better alternative to the regular public schools. Yet many of the existing ones are struggling. While organizers have a missionary zeal, the ongoing challenge of managing a school has been overwhelming for many.read more
    Guest Columns

    A New Philadelphia Story by Scott Joftus


    Troubled school districts can be turned around by strong leadership, but the new governing structure likely demands increased centralization, according to a consultant who reviewed the progress in the Philadelphia Public Schools.read more

    Endangering Democracy With High-Stakes Testing by Michael H. Romanowski


    A year-long experience teaching education classes at a large Chinese university gave the author first-hand insights into the demands of China’s education system and the sort of students it produces.read more

    Playing Golf Under Educational Accountability Rules by Jack McKay


    What if we applied the guidelines of public education accountability to golf and measured golf clubs through the average of all golfers’ shot totals? The director of the Horace Mann League lays out the new ground rules.read more
    People

    People


    Appointments to the superintendency and retirements from the field nationwide.read more
    Board-Savvy Superintendent

    Which Data Should You Put in Board Hands? by Mark van Clay


    While board members need solid data to make good decisions, turning over inappropriate data can become a beguiling siren’s song for micromanagement. One superintendent’s prescription for preventing data abuse.read more
    President's Corner

    Creating Healthy Learning Environments by Sarah D. Jerome


    To deal with the complexity of making schools healthy places for learning, AASA’s elected leader devised her 10 P’s of Healthy Schools.read more
    Executive Perspective

    Bagpipes and a Spot of Grace by Paul D. Houston


    The one-time battlefields of Scotland, site of a recent vacation, yielded a few discoveries that apply to American education.read more
    Systems Thinking

    From Random Acts to a System of Safety and Security by Jane Hammond


    Three factors define a comprehensive plan for establishing safe schools in a systemic way. The former superintendent of Jefferson County, Colo., schools has ideas for acting as a whole.read more

    Book Reviews

    The Tutoring Revolution  Applying Research for Best Practices, Policy Implications, and Student Achievement by Edward E. Gordon, Ronald R. Morgan, Charles J. O’Malley and Judith Ponticell