We are currently in the review phase for our forthcoming issue, which will feature a selection of Open Call articles alongside a curated Special Issue on school reforms and state takeovers. The issue is currently scheduled for publication in early Spring 2026. We appreciate the thoughtful contributions from our authors and editorial board during this process. Stay tuned for updates as we move closer to publication!
In the meantime, we invite you to read more about our upcoming 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.
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:
- How do issues of race, class, gender, and equity intersect with state intervention in public education?
- 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?
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.