1. 10/22/02 The School System of the U.S.
Connecting the Past and the Present

2. What does the school system look like?
See Text pages 207, 218
[note: we examined organization charts in class]

3. Educational Roles at Different Levels of Government
Federal
State
Local
Sets broad goals & priorities
Funding and support to states & local districts
Legal decisions
Establishes local districts
Raises & distributes tax money to local districts
Sets curriculum guides & teacher standards
Implements local, state and national policies
Major responsibility for day-to-day operations of schools, including staffing, funding, and instructional concerns

4. Responsibilities of Local School Boards
Policy
Staffing
Employee Relations
Fiscal Matters
Student Concerns
Curriculum and Assessment
Community Relations
Intergovernmental Relations

5. A Typical School Board Member
Male (about 61%)
White (about 92%)
Over 40 (86%)
College-educated (75%)
High-income (81% over $40,000/year)
Parent of a child in district (57%)
Conservative (55%)

6. Types of Community Involvement in Schools
Community Participation
Advisory committees to neighborhood school or local school board
Community Education
Schools partner with community agencies to offer social & educational programs to a wide variety of people.
Community Control
School boards
Local School Councils
Charter schools

7. Private School Statistics
Eleven percent of U.S. students attend private schools. Of those:
50% attend Catholic schools.
15% attend nonreligious, independent schools.