| This descriptive study examined outsourcing by School Based Management, Charter and Los Angeles Educational Alliance for Restructuring Now (LEARN) schools within the Los Angeles Unified School District. The purpose of the study was to determine whether schools that had the fiscal ability to outsource for goods and services did so, and if so, for what reasons and with what effect on the school district.; The research was conducted in three phases. First, principals of all schools in the three reform programs were surveyed to: (a) invite their participation in the study, (b) determine if their schools outsourced and (c) identify outsourced services. Second, identified principals were interviewed to discuss the motivation and evaluation of their decision to outsource. Third, administrators of outsourced district services were interviewed to determine the effect of outsourcing on their work and categorize responses.; Quantitative and qualitative procedures were used to determine the results. Revealed was that outsourcing occurred by schools of all types, within all programs, for a wide variety of services and products and had been generated by a variety of reasons. Outsourcing was not found specific to program type. Elementary schools outsourced at a rate significantly lower than middle or high schools. The larger the school, the greater the number of outsourcing services found.; The effect of school outsourcing on counterpart district service providers varied by the type of services rendered. Responses by district offices to schools' outsourcing of their services were categorized as: (a) supportive of outsourcing, often due to diminished services offered by the district, (b) concern for the district's ability to sustain the quality of legally mandated services and (c) competitive.; An important recommendation based upon the outsourcing literature and study findings is that the school district consider establishing appropriate parameters for outsourcing guided by its core role as an educational institution, the priorities of its reform agenda and the cost effectiveness of the practice. |
