A Place at the Table: The Changing Role of Urban Public Education Funds

Public education funds have emerged as durable players in urban school reform efforts. These nonprofit public/private partnerships, linked by the Public Education Fund Network in Washington, D.C., are active in more than 60 U.S. cities. They have moved beyond their initial support programs of minigrants to teachers, adopt-a-school efforts, and public relations work to whole-school change initiatives and direct involvement in critical policy questions. Funds that succeed in this new role tend to have strong private-sector representation on their boards, a local superintendent who welcomes the participation of "inside/outside" reform groups, and staff members who are skilled at negotiation and communication.