For decades, Americans have debated why our students consistently score lower than their peers in other developed countries. While most debates have focused on school spending, curriculum, teacher quality, and teachers' unions, No Adult Left Behind argues that local democratic control is the root of the problem. Elected school boards govern local school districts, but only adults vote in local elections – most of whom don't have children or care about academics. This leads to educational debates that are centered around issues that adults care most about, such as partisanship, identity politics, property values, and employment concerns, while the needs of students get left behind. In identifying the misalignment between the interests of school children and the political and policy agendas of the adults who control education, No Adult Left Behind stands to become a landmark study on modern education politics.

‘This book could not be more timely! In some ways the debates and issues schools are struggling with today are new. But, as Vlad’s book shows, many of them are not. The history presented about polarized schooling debates, and ways to frame them, are invaluable as we contend with what seems like an era of more continuous cultural wars.’

Dan Goldhaber - Affiliate Research Professor, School of Social Work, University of Washington

‘Some of the books I’ve most valued are those that rankled and perturbed me because they challenged my presumptions and led me to sharpen my thinking and arguments. While there’s much here with which I disagree, No Adult Left Behind is stimulating, forceful and too important to ignore.’

Jeffrey R. Henig - Emeritus Professor of Political Science & Education, Teachers College, Columbia University

‘As the US government withdraws from public education, the importance of local politics increases. Vladimir Kogan shows how teacher unions and other adult groups now work against children’s need for effective, equitable schools. His ideas on how to focus local politics on school quality are steps in the right direction.’

Paul T. Hill - author of Making Politics Work: Practical Lessons on Politics for Would-Be Education Reformers (Chicago 2025)

‘The holy grail for political scientists is to connect the dots from governance systems to policy choices all the way down to the results produced by important government services. That’s exactly what Vladimir Kogan has done for American public schools in No Adult Left Behind.’

Martin West - Henry Lee Shattuck Professor of Education, Harvard