School Reform, Chicago Style

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Abstract
In 1988, the Chicago Public Schools embarked on a bold experiment to transfer power from the central administration to elected councils in charge of each of the system's 542 schools. Tracing the demographic, economic, social, and, above all, political context of this reform effort, this article argues that several key problems have yet to be worked out. First, the reform process was dominated by Whites and took place during the political upheaval that followed Mayor Harold Washington's death. Thus many African-Americans remain skeptical about the initiative. Second, educational professionals did not play a major role in designing the reforms and many still do not feel a sense of "ownership" of them. Finally, conflicts between the central administration and the local councils remain unresolved.

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