Doctoral Dissertation Research: Alternative constructions of authority in establishing institutions

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Building on previous research that examines the interpretation and construction of law in organizational contexts, this project evaluates the hypothesis that relevant law both shapes how actors view authorization of new forms of organization under law, and how law in turn is shaped by encounters with alternative understandings regarding the role of locally significant institutions' understandings emanating from practice, the market, or elsewhere- that inform the bureaucratic authorization process. The project will take the authorization of charter schools, significant social institutions, as the site for analysis of the reciprocal shaping of law and organizations. Although there exists a well-developed literature on the performance and place of charter schools within market-based education reforms, there have been few empirical studies of how the parties relevant to charter governance encounter, invoke, and use the law in the vital moments of school authorization, renewal, and closure. The project will integrate analysis of the sociolegal dimensions of organizational authorization and revocation under law with mapping of relevant organizations. The study uses a multi-method approach with two phases: 1) quantitative analysis of the current and historical population of relevant organizations to reveal patterns and types of establishment, challenged or denied renewal, closure, and legal appeal, with a focus on the participation and significance of legal professionals, and 2) qualitative case studies of specific authorization actions, including analysis of charter petitions and authorization documents and in-depth interviews of the parties to charter authorization. To the field of education research, this project brings needed sociolegal attention to law within educational organizations, spaces characterized by the retention of public accountability in the face of increasing privatization. By focusing on the ways actors invoke, make use of, and extend the law in the processes of charter school authorization, this study will have important implications for charter operators, the bodies legally tasked with charter oversight, and for policymakers as they evaluate the place of charter schools within educational reform. The project will also train students in methods in the social sciences.