Third-Party Governance under No Child Left Behind: Accountability and Performance Management Challenges

This study examines public management challenges faced by educational agencies that are required to set up a market for providing choice in supplemental educational services (SES) for students in underperforming schools and to hold nongovernmental providers accountable for their performance in increasing student achievement. The operations and performance of SES providers in a large urban school district, as well as how their performance in increasing student achievement relates to their market shares, are examined empirically and through qualitative information gathered through focus groups, interviews, and student surveys. The study finds that SES provider market shares were not highly correlated with estimates of provider performance or other relevant vendor characteristics, and local educational agencies were not satisfied with their level of control over service quality and educational outcomes. Control over the flow of funds, which improved over time, was their primary lever for managing these third-party relationships.