Frederick M. Hess

Frederick M. Hess is an American educator, political scientist, and author. He is resident scholar and director of education policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), a position he has held since 2002. A former high school social studies teacher, he has taught at the University of Virginia, the University of Pennsylvania, Georgetown University, Rice University, and Harvard University.

Education and Early Career

Hess earned a B.A. in political science from Brandeis University and an M. Ed. in teaching and curriculum from Harvard University. After two years teaching at Scotlandville High School in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, he returned to Harvard for a Ph.D. in government. His dissertation, later published as Spinning Wheels: The Politics of Urban School Reform (Brookings Institution Press, 1998), focused on how policy churn in urban school districts has led to stagnated student improvement. Hess joined the faculty at the University of Virginia in 1997, and taught as an assistant professor of education and politics until 2002.

American Enterprise Institute

In 2002, Hess became a resident scholar and the founding director of the education policy studies program at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), a nonpartisan public policy think tank in Washington, DC.

One of the AEI Education’s flagship initiatives is the Future of American Education Project, which includes both original empirical research and biannual off-the-record working groups for both K-12 and higher education composed of leading researchers, entrepreneurs, foundation officials, and policymakers. Working group attendees include Dominic Brewer, University of Southern California; Michael Feinberg, KIPP schools; Jay P. Greene, University of Arkansas; and Kim Smith, NewSchools Venture Fund.

While at AEI, Hess has hosted numerous public events with policymakers to discuss their visions for reforming American education. Recent speakers include US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan on cost-efficiency in K-12 schools, Congressman John Kline (R-MN) on the Republican vision to fix the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), and former Washington, DC, Chancellor and current StudentsFirst CEO Michelle Rhee on how education leaders can overcome counterproductive rules and regulations. Hess has also led major conferences on the Common Core State Standards Initiative, civic education, the federal role in education, and school funding.

In addition to long-term research projects and publications, Hess has authored pieces for scholarly and popular outlets such as Teachers College Record, Harvard Education Review, Social Science Quarterly, Urban Affairs Review, American Politics Quarterly, The Chronicle of Higher Education, Phi Delta Kappan, Educational Leadership, U.S. News & World Report, National Affairs, the Washington Post, the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, the Atlantic, and National Review.

Hess is also the author of the Education Week blog Rick Hess Straight Up.

Other Professional Activities

Hess serves as executive editor of Education Next, as lead faculty member for the Rice Education Entrepreneurship Program, and on the review boards for the Broad Prize in Urban Education and the Broad Prize for Public Charter Schools. He also serves on the boards of directors of the National Association of Charter School Authorizers, 4.0 SCHOOLS and the American Board for the Certification of Teaching Excellence.

Select Publications

Books

• Cage-Busting Leadership (2013)
• The Same Thing Over and Over: How School Reformers Get Stuck in Yesterday’s Ideas (2010)
• Education Unbound: The Promise and Practice of Greenfield Schooling (2010)
• No Child Left Behind (with Michael J. Petrilli, 2007)
• Common Sense School Reform (2006)
• Tough Love for Schools: Essays on Competition, Accountability, and Excellence (2006)
• Revolution at the Margins: The Impact of Competition on Urban School Systems (2002)
• Spinning Wheels: The Politics of Urban School Reform (1998)

Edited Volumes

• The Futures of School Reform (2012)
• Making Civics Count: Citizenship Education for a New Generation (2012)
• Carrots, Sticks, and the Bully Pulpit: Lessons from a Half-Century of Federal Efforts to Improve America’s Schools (2012)
• Customized Schooling: Beyond Whole-School Reform (2011)
• Stretching the School Dollar: How Schools and Districts Can Save Money While Serving Students Best (2010)
• What Next?: Educational Innovation and Philadelphia’s School of the Future (2010)
• The Politically Correct University: Problems, Scope, and Reforms (2009)
• The Future of Educational Entrepreneurship: Possibilities for School Reform (2008)
• When Research Matters: How Scholarship Influences Education Policy (2008)
• No Remedy Left Behind: Lessons from a Half-Decade of NCLB (2007)
• Footing the Tuition Bill: The New Student Loan Sector (2007)
• Educational Entrepreneurship: Realities, Challenges, Possibilities (2006)
• Urban School Reform: Lessons from San Diego (2005)
• With the Best of Intentions: How Philanthropy is Reshaping K-12 Education (2005)
• A Qualified Teacher in Every Classroom? Appraising Old Answers and New Ideas (2004)
• School Choice in the Real World: Lessons from Arizona Charter Schools (2001)
• Leaving No Child Behind?: Options for Kids in Failing Schools (2004)

In addition to books and edited volumes, Hess has published a number of scholarly research reports. These include Learning to Lead: What Gets Taught in Principal Preparation Programs; Diplomas and Dropouts: Which Colleges Actually Graduate Their Students (and Which Don’t); and three iterations of the Leaders and Laggards series (on K-12 performance, K-12 innovation, and higher education), all published by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.