Frequently Asked Questions about My Public Records Requests

1. Who is Nora Gordon?

Nora Gordon is an assistant professor of economics at the University of California, San Diego. She teaches and conducts research on the economics of education and public finance. You may verify her employment by checking the UCSD economics department faculty list.

2. Why is she requesting these records?

Nora Gordon is conducting an academic research project about the degree of competition in the market for comprehensive school reform services. She is not working as a consultant to any outside party nor does she (nor the University of California) hold any financial interest in the contents of these records. She wants to understand how districts and vendors negotiate. She will be using the records for all districts in California and Texas as one data set, rather then focusing her attention on any individual district. In the future, her research from this request will be posted on her website.

3. What is comprehensive school reform? How do I know if my district has any programs?

The North Central Regional Educational Laboratory writes that, “Comprehensive school reform (CSR) is an approach to school improvement that focuses on reorganizing and revitalizing the entire school, rather than on implementing individual programs.” Under No Child Left Behind, there are eleven required components in order for a program to be recognized as CSR. Prior to NCLB, other programs may have been considered CSR that do not meet these criteria. Districts purchasing CSR with non-federal revenue post-NCLB may also view certain programs that do not meet these criteria as CSR programs.

For the purposes of this public records request, CSR programs have three important characteristics. (1) They are purchased from an outside vendor (this could include a county office of education or regional district, or any private vendor on the list in your letter), (2) regardless of the funding source (they may be purchased with a federal Comprehensive School Reform Grant or through any other state, local or private revenue source), (3) as long as the vendor is providing more than one type of product in any one school. For example, if your district purchases only the Accelerated Reader and Accelerated Math software from Renaissance Learning, then this arrangement is not subject to my request. If, however, your district purchases Accelerated Reader and separately purchases professional development to accompany it from Renaissance Learning, then this is subject to my request. Textbook purchases, even if they include training, are an exception and are not covered by this request.

4. My district did not purchase anything through a federal comprehensive school reform grant. Does this request still apply?

If the district contracted with an outside vendor to provider more than one type of product in a given school, this request applies even if the funding for the purchase was not from a federal comprehensive school reform grant.

5. We do not have records of contracts with our comprehensive school reform vendors, only purchasing orders. Is that okay?

Yes. Anything which states what the vendor will deliver (which specific services and/or materials, such as “5 days of in-service training”) and how much it will cost (ideally how much each individual item costs rather than one total cost for multiple products) will satisfy my request.

6. Why is my district included in the request?

The request was sent to all school districts in California and Texas.

7. I received the letter more than ten days after its date. How can I comply?

The letters were sent bulk mail and may have taken more than ten days to arrive. Please respond via email to noragordon.csr@gmail.com within ten days of your receipt of the letter.

8. My district does not retain records back to 1994. How can I comply?

I realize that you can only supply records that you have. If you have any relevant records to send me, please include a note stating the earliest year of records available in your district so I know which years were included in your search.

9. It’s the end of the year and we do not have the staff to fulfill the request within 10 days. How can I comply?

Please respond via email to noragordon.csr@gmail.com within ten days of your receipt of the letter to arrange for an extension.

10. My district has no comprehensive school reform services. How can I comply?

Please send an email to noragordon.csr@gmail.com stating that your district has not had any comprehensive school reform services in the period covered by your records. Please include the first year of records examined (how far back they go) and the name of your district. There is no need to include any board policies about public records or duplication costs if this is the case.

11. Who will pay for the cost of complying with the request?

Professor Gordon will send a check to your district. Please let her know how to make out the check and where to send it.