Call for Submissions

We are currently accepting submissions for our open call and special issues. Submissions to Texas Education Review are managed via the Texas Digital Library. You can login or create your account by clicking here.

Open Call:

We are currently accepting submissions that address sociopolitical, economic, cultural, and organizational issues in education on a rolling basis. We invite practitioners, policy-makers, activists, and researchers, as well as emerging and faculty scholars to submit manuscripts and editorials via the Texas Digital Library (TDL).

Deadline for Consideration in the Summer 2025 Issue: February 14, 2025

Summer 2025 Special Issue

Democracy Dismantled: Takeover and the Lived Experience of State-Directed Urban School Reform

Guest Co-Editors: Dr. Maria Benzon and Daniel Dawer

In 2023, the Texas Education Agency (TEA) seized control of the Houston Independent School District (HISD), the largest district in Texas and the eighth largest in the country. Citing concerns about academic performance and governance, the district’s state-appointed leaders have since carried out “wholescale systemic reform,” a process that has included a reorganization of HISD’s leadership structure, mass replacement of thousands of teachers and principals, and the introduction of a prescribed curriculum and instructional model. Extending what Collins and Reckhow (2024) term a “new education politics,” this intensification of state activism in local reform efforts has triggered a grassroots resistance movement led by Houston educators, families, and community members, who have challenged their subjection to undemocratic—and racialized—forms of political disempowerment similar to those observed in takeovers of other high-profile urban districts (Buras, 2011; Cohen et al., 2018; Morel, 2018).

Across the first two years of implementation, the HISD takeover has sparked discussions about state authority, local autonomy, accountability policy, grassroots activism, and democratic governance. We seek to explore the consequences of this and other state takeovers, their implications for equity, and their impacts on students, educators, and communities, as well as their significance within state and national contexts. As we strive to advance the discourse surrounding educational policies and practice, we invite scholars, researchers, and practitioners to contribute their insights to this important dialogue.

Scope of Special Issue
This special issue aims to provide an analysis of takeovers by examining their historical, political, social, educational, and economic dimensions. We welcome articles that address, but are not limited to, the following topics: 

  • What are the historical precedents and political motivations underlying state takeovers of school districts?
  • How have takeovers affected resource allocation and governance structures?
  • What are the perspectives of key stakeholders, including educators, students, families, and community leaders, on takeover?
  • How does takeover affect educator autonomy, wellbeing, and burnout?
  • What lessons can be learned from this case or others for other urban districts facing similar challenges?
  • How do issues of race, class, gender, and equity intersect with state intervention in public education? 

We welcome submissions of original research articles, policy analyses, and editorials. Submissions should align with Texas Education Review’s mission to advance critical dialogue on educational policy and practice. All manuscripts will undergo a rigorous peer-review process. 

Submission Guidelines
To be considered for the special issue, please submit: 

  • An article no more than 7,000 words (not including endnotes, references, tables and appendices)
    • Editorials are also encouraged and must fall between 1,000-3,000 words
  • All articles must include a 150-word abstract and 3-5 keywords 
  • Articles must be written in strict APA 7 format. Additional submission guidelines can be found here: https://review.education.utexas.edu/guidelines/
  • Articles are due to Texas Education Review on February 28, 2025 with anticipated publication in Summer 2025. All articles will undergo editorial screening, followed by double-blind peer review. Paper submission does not guarantee acceptance.

The special issue will be co-edited by Dr. Maria Benzon and Daniel Dawer. Please send your manuscript to maria.benzon@gmail.com and daniel.dawer@utexas.edu with the subject line “TxEd Review Special Issue S25.”

References

Buras, K. (2011). Race, charter schools, and conscious capitalism: On the spatial politics of whiteness as property (and the unconscionable assault on Black New Orleans). Harvard Educational Review, 81(2), 296-331. https://doi.org/10.17763/haer.81.2.6l42343qqw360j03

Cohen, J., Golden, M.M., Quinn, R., & Simon, E. (2018). Democracy thwarted or democracy at work? Local public engagement and the new education policy landscape. American Journal of Education, 124(4), 411-443. https://doi.org/10.1086/698452

Collins, J., & Reckhow, R. (2024). The new education politics in the United States. Annual Review of Political Science, 27, 127-146. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-polisci-041322-034446

Morel, D. (2018). Takeover: Race, education, and American democracy. Oxford University Press.