School privatization and the goal of greater efficiency: A case study of the relationship between theory and practice of privatization in an Edison Charter School

Privatization is a growing phenomenon in public education in spite of the fact that we know little about what happens when a for-profit entity manages a public school. The purpose of this study was to identify the theoretical propositions linking privatization to efficiency and investigate the degree to which they manifest in practice.; The literature on privatization in general and school privatization specifically suggests that theoretically, privatization will enhance efficiency because private managers will (1) function in a competitive market, (2) manage deregulated schools, (3) motivate with incentives, (4) decrease labor costs, (5) infuse financial capital, (6) implement effective practices, and (7) operate accountably. To ascertain whether these propositions manifest in practice, I conducted a single-case study of a charter school managed by Edison Schools Incorporated. The data for the study consisted of a document review; a total of 61 interviews with board members, school personnel, parents, Edison staff, and policymakers; and informal school observations.; The study revealed that: (1) Edison did not compete for its initial management sub-contract but did compete for its charter and its students and is projected to compete to have its sub-contract renewed; (2) charter school status of this particular Edison school led to deregulation and re-regulation; (3) Edison implemented policies aimed at minimizing labor costs, but the policies triggered unintended consequences; (4) Edison's profits served as an incentive to manage efficiently, but the incentives were not effectively passed to school personnel; (5) Edison was proficient at accessing capital and providing cash flow; (6) Edison successfully implemented some effective practices but struggled to implement others; and (7) Edison was accountable to multiple constituents, but specific goals and objectives were somewhat vague.; The case raises questions about the degree to which privatization is reliably transferred to public education, demonstrates the influence of outside mediating factors on privatization and indicates that the strategies interact in ways that help and hinder efforts to increase efficiency. The case also suggests a need to refine the theoretical framework to incorporate the influence of outside forces upon private managers' efforts to implement strategies to increase efficiency in the schools they operate.