2020 Dennis Judd Best Book Award, American Political Science Association

Outside Money in School Board Elections documents and analyzes the injection of external funding into local elections. Local school board contests have recently become flashpoints of national donor interest. Some observers see this engagement as a needed boost for complacent school districts while others view it as a threat to local democracy.

Drawing on a detailed study of elections in five districts (Bridgeport, Connecticut, Denver, Indianapolis, Los Angeles, and New Orleans), the authors explore what happens when national issues percolate downward into local politics. They suggest that the involvement of wealthy individuals and national organizations in local school board elections are signs of the nationalization of local education politics that potentially have significant implications for equity and democracy.

Outside Money in School Board Elections brings attention back to local participation and the diversity of players at that level, and highlights the national trend of increasing wealth inequality and its impact on the politics of education. This cross-case investigation demonstrates that local and national education politics are not separate fields but closely intertwined areas of political advocacy with complex interactions.
About the Author: Jeffrey R. Henig (PhD, Northwestern University) is a professor of political science and education at Teachers College, and professor of political science at Columbia University. Among his books related to education politics are Rethinking School Choice: Limits of the Market Metaphor; The Color of School Reform: Race, Politics, and the Challenge of Urban Education (named by the Urban Politics Section of the American Political Science Association as the "Best book written on urban politics" in 1999); Building Civic Capacity: The Politics of Reforming Urban Schools (named by the Urban Politics Section of the American Political Science Association as the "best book written on urban politics" in 2001); and Spin Cycle: How Research Is Used in Policy Debates (winner of the 2010 American Educational Research Association "Outstanding Book" award). Other books, also published by Harvard Education Press, include Between Public and Private (with Katrina Bulkley and Henry M. Levin); The End of Exceptionalism in American Education; and The New Education Philanthropy (with Frederick M. Hess).

Rebecca Jacobsen (PhD, Teachers College, Columbia University) is an associate professor of education politics and policy in the College of Education at Michigan State University. Her research examines how policies shape opportunities for and barriers to civic and political engagement with the public education system. Drawing from the fields of political science, public policy, and performance management, Jacobsen's work focuses on ways to strengthen public commitment to public education. She has written extensively about the politics of accountability policies, local school politics, and whether and how schools prepare the next generation of citizens for active engagement in the democratic process. Her work has been published in a number of journals, including Teachers College Record, American Educational Research Journal, American Journal of Education, and Urban Affairs Review. Prior to graduate school, Rebecca taught elementary and middle school in the New York City public schools and was a member of Teach For America. Follow her @Rebec_Jacobsen.

Sarah Reckhow (PhD, University of California, Berkeley) is an associate professor of political science at Michigan State University. Her research areas include urban politics, education policy, and nonprofits and philanthropy. Her awarding-winning book with Oxford University Press, Follow the Money: How Foundation Dollars Change Public School Politics, examines the role of major foundations, such as the Gates Foundation, in urban school reform. Her recent work has been published in Journal of Urban Affairs, Policy Studies Journal, Urban Affairs Review, and Educational Researcher. Prior to graduate school, Sarah taught high school in the Baltimore City Public Schools and was a member of Teach For America.