Public vs. private: the early history of school choice in America

225 Pages·2018·11.359 MB·English

by  Gross, Robert N

public vs. private

Public vs. Private
The Early History of School Choice
in America
Robert N. Gross
1
1
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Library of Congress Cataloging- in- Publication Data
Names: Gross, Robert N., author.
Title: Public vs. private : the early history of school choice in America / Robert N. Gross.
Description: New York, NY : Oxford University Press, [2018] |
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2017029075 (print) | LCCN 2017030417 (ebook) |
ISBN 9780190644581 (updf) | ISBN 9780190644598 (epub) |
ISBN 9780190644604 (online component) | ISBN 9780190644574 (hardback : alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: School choice—United States—History. | Public schools—United States—History. |
Private schools—United States—History. | Education—United States—History.
Classification: LCC LB1027.9 (ebook) | LCC LB1027.9 .G76 2018 (print) | DDC 379.1/11—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017029075
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Printed by Sheridan Books, Inc., United States of America
For Natalie

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction: Private Schools and Public Regulation in American History 1
1. Public Monopoly 9
2. Competing Schools 26
3. Educational Regulation 46
4. Public Policy and Private Schools 62
5. Creating the Educational Marketplace 83
6. Fighting the Educational Monopoly 105
Epilogue: Public Problems and Private Education in the Post- World War II Era 125
Notes 137
Bibliography 179
Index 195
vii

Acknowledgments
This book would not have been possible without the many teachers, students, col-
leagues, friends, and family members, who instilled in me a passion for the past. First and
foremost is Bill Reese, who guided me through graduate school with generosity, trust,
kindness, and rigor. I am immensely privileged to have worked with Bill, and since wind-
ing up in Washington, DC, am fortunate to be able to see him frequently during his many
trips out east. I am also indebted to my undergraduate mentor, Mary Ann Dzuback,
who introduced me to the history of education, and to the careful practice of historical
scholarship.
Throughout the production of this manuscript I have received feedback from truly
excellent historians and mentors. At the University of Wisconsin, Adam R. Nelson and
Jennifer Ratner- Rosenhagen helped develop my abilities as a researcher and teacher since
the beginning of graduate school, and were instrumental in helping me think through
how to frame this book’s questions and arguments. Colleen Dunlavy and Julie Mead
generously lent their expertise in business history and education law to this project,
and Jeremi Suri’s guidance in the initial stages of the manuscript helped get me started.
Comments at conferences on my presented work from Ruben Donato, Ruben Flores,
Carl Kaestle, Kip Kosek, John Modern, Tracy Steffes, Maris Vinovskis, and Jonathan
Zimmerman were also immensely helpful.
Colleagues throughout the country were equally instrumental in helping take this
project to the finish line. Frank Honts, Campbell Scribner, and Christine Lamberson, in
addition to being dear friends, are exemplary scholars and professionals, whose intellec-
tual habits and precise feedback have deeply influenced me. Britt Tevis helped me clarify
ix