Carrots, Sticks, and the Bully Pulpit
by Frederick M. Hess • May 25, 2011 at 8:29 am
Cross-posted from Education Week
Monday, at AEI, we hosted one of our major conferences, on "Carrots, Sticks, and the Bully Pulpit: Sobering Lessons from a Half Century of Federal Efforts to Improve America's Schools" (you can watch it here). The conference featured eleven new papers by authors including Mike Smith, Checker Finn, Maris Vinovskis, Mark Schneider, Jane Hannaway, Paul Manna, and Mike Casserly (you can find copies of all of the papers here), and reactions from discussants including DC Chancellor Kaya Henderson, L.A. supe John Deasy, ED chief of staff (and former RTT chief) Joanne Weiss, former Congressman Mike Castle, RI state supe Deborah Gist, Ed Trust's Kati Haycock, and Fordham's Mike Petrilli.
The question of the hour was what we've learned over time about what federal government has does relatively well, and what it hasn't done as well, when it comes to K-12 schooling. There was surprising consensus from an array of authors with diverse perspectives and frames of reference. There seemed to be a shared sense that the feds can have enjoyed substantial success when it came to ensuring access for vulnerable populations
