Politics of Accountability within a School-to-Career Initiative: Implementation, Representation, and Evaluation

This article reports on the politics of accountability in one state's school-to-career initiative. School-to-career systems are defined to include educational and work-related curricula and vocational guidance for all students. Historical contexts of school-to-career initiatives are presented. Perspectives of the federal government, state agencies, local partnerships, and a university evaluation team on what it means to implement school-to-career programs are discussed and differences explored. The article considers influences on program design, outcomes, and systems change efforts. This discussion focuses on three areas: (a) the politics of implementation-dilemmas faced in balancing constituent interests, (b) the politics of representation-how representation on a state management team affects partnership efforts, and (c) the politics of evaluation-ways in which accountability and standards reflect beliefs and alter practices in education settings. The article concludes with considerations and recommendations for policy makers.