This year, as you consider new education laws, I ask you to consider the principle of Subsidiarity. Subsidiarity is the idea that a central authority should only perform those tasks which cannot be performed at a more immediate or local level. In other words, higher or more remote levels of government, like the state, should render assistance to local school districts, but always respect their primary jurisdiction and the dignity and freedom of teachers and students.
See more on California’s new Local Control and Accountability plan for school finance here and here.
Not too sure that the definition of “subsidiarity” is as affective (“always respect their………..”)as here presented, however my 42 year experience in working as a teacher, administrator, and superintendent in the state of California (six districts) tells me that there are numerous facets of national, state, and local control, all terms of which mean little without specific guidelines and parameters related to actual meaning. The term opens a whole horizon of possibilites, opportunities, and issues.