Dear Jeff,

For decades, reformers have promised to improve the public schools,
but recent newspaper headlines show that many schools have gotten
worse:

* "Threshold lowered on exit exams -- State OKs high school
standard below what was originally proposed"
* "'Abysmal' exit test results for 9th-graders -- Most flunk if 70%
is a passing grade"
* "Small wars plague the schools -- Teachers, district, mayor embroiled"
* "Schools Add Security in Reaction to Violence"

Why have efforts to improve the public school system been such
failures? Which reforms are more likely to overcome the political
obstacles to improve education? Which reforms best ensure that
schools will be held accountable to parents? Which reform proposals
have the greatest potential for fostering educational excellence?

To explore these and related question, the Independent Policy Forum
will feature two noted education experts: Richard Vedder (author, CAN
TEACHERS OWN THEIR OWN SCHOOLS?) and John Merrifield (author, THE
SCHOOL CHOICE WARS). The program will be held the evening of
Thursday, July 5th, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., at the Independent
Institute's conference center in Oakland, California.

For your review, I am adding below an invitation with further details
on the program. Because seating is limited, please make your
reservations as soon as possible.  For further information, please
contact me or the Institute's Events Coordinator, Ms. Nichelle
Beardsley, at 510-632-1366 x118.

We hope to see you on July 5th.

Sincerely,

David J. Theroux
Founder and President
The Independent Institute
100 Swan Way
Oakland, CA 95621-1428
510-632-1366 Phone
510-568-6040 Fax
DTheroux@independent.org
http://www.independent.org

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

WHY ARE THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS FAILING AND WHAT CAN BE DONE? - Next
Independent Policy Forum (July 5, 2001)

American children learn less than they did 30 years ago, and even
where there are signs of improvement, they are small. Many high
school graduates -- 90 percent of whom attended government-operated
public schools -- lack the skills needed in today's
knowledge-intensive workplace. Further, many students fail to
graduate. (The dropout rate in California is 32 percent overall, and
45 percent for immigrants.) Parents and educators have long
recognized the shortcomings of the public school system, but their
efforts to reform it have failed. Are school vouchers and charter
schools the answer? What about teacher-owned schools? What other
reforms might make schools more innovative and accountable to
parents? Please join us as education experts RICHARD VEDDER and JOHN
MERRIFIELD examine new strategies for achieving educational
excellence.

SPEAKERS:

-- RICHARD VEDDER, Senior Fellow, The Independent Institute;
Professor of Economics, Ohio University; author, CAN TEACHERS OWN
THEIR OWN SCHOOLS?

-- JOHN MERRIFIELD, Senior Research Associate; The Education Policy
Institute; Professor of Economics, University of Texas, San Antonio;
author, THE SCHOOL CHOICE WARS

WHEN:
Thursday, July 5, 2001
Reception and book signing: 6:30 p.m.
Program: 7:00 - 8:30 p.m.

WHERE:
The Independent Institute Conference Center
100 Swan Way
Oakland, CA 94621-1428
For a map and directions, see
http://www.independent.org/tii/tii_info/about.html#map

TICKETS: $30.00 per person: includes one copy of Richard Vedder's
book, CAN TEACHERS OWN THEIR OWN SCHOOLS?, OR John Merrifield's book,
THE SCHOOL CHOICE WARS, OR admission without a book is $10 per person
($7 for Independent Institute Associate Members)

Praise for Richard Vedder's book, CAN TEACHERS OWN THEIR OWN SCHOOLS?

"Vedder suggests for-profit schools owned and operated by teachers
and school administrators would offer a promising alternative to the
present public school system."
-- SCHOOL REFORM NEWS

"Nobody yet has found a foolproof formula for revitalizing American
K-12 education. So let's be humble enough -- and empirical enough --
to try as many tantalizing approaches as we can. In that spirit, I
commend Richard Vedder's pioneering ideas."
-- CHESTER E. FINN, JR., former Assistant Secretary, U.S.
Department of Education

For more information about CAN TEACHERS OWN THEIR OWN SCHOOLS?
see http://independent.org/tii/catalog_pr/policy_schools.html.

Praise for John Merrifield's book, THE SCHOOL CHOICE WARS

"Professor Merrifield asks this question: what is meant by and what
is the intended consequence of reforms bearing such labels as
vouchers, school choice, charter schools, privatization, and
competition? This book brilliantly and clearly exposes the
superficiality and extraordinary fuzziness of those labels."
-- SEYMOUR B. SARASON, author, CHARTER SCHOOLS: Another Flawed
Educational Reform?

For more about this event, see
http://www.independent.org/tii/forums/010705ipf.html.