John Portz
Professor of Political Science
John Portz teaches and conducts research in the general areas of state and local politics, public policy, and public education. His specific research interests include school politics, accountability, and governance, as well as public leadership. His current research project focuses on different types of educational accountability in elementary and secondary education at different levels of American federalism.
In spring 2024 he was a Fulbright Distinguished Scholar in Brazil where he gave a series of lectures on American politics. In his home community of Watertown, he served as an elected member of the Town Council for nine years and the Watertown School Committee for 16 years.
- 1993 Involved Citizen of the Year. From the Watertown Chamber of Commerce.
- 1997 Theodore Lowi Award. From the Policy Studies Organization for the best article in the 1996 issue of the Policy Studies Journal.
- 2021. “Beyond Test Scores: “School Quality or Student Success” in State ESSA Plans.” Teachers College Record.
- 2023. Educational Accountability and American Federalism: Moving Beyond a Test-Based Approach. New York: Routledge Press.
2023. Educational Accountability and American Federalism: Moving Beyond a Test-Based Approach. New York: Routledge Press.
2021. “Beyond Test Scores: “School Quality or Student Success” in State ESSA Plans.” Teachers College Record.
2020. “Policy Design and Educational Accountability: A Closer Look at Indicators and Overall Ratings in State ESSA Plans.” with Nicholas Beauchamp. Educational Policy.
2017. “’Next-Generation’ Accountability? Evidence from Three School Districts.” Urban Education.
2010. Leader-Managers in the Public Sector: Managing for Results. With Michael S. Dukakis. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, Inc.
2007. “Governance and the Boston Public Schools,” in Boston: A Decade of Urban School Reform, ed. by Paul Reville, Harvard Education Press.
2003. “Boston: Agenda Setting and School Reform in a Mayor-Centric System,” in Mayors in the Middle: Politics, Race, and a Mayor-Centric Approach to Urban Schools, ed. by Jeff Henig and Wilbur Rich, Princeton University Press.
2000. “Supporting Education Reform: Mayoral and Corporate Paths,” Urban Education, November.
1999. City Schools and City Politics: Institutions and Leadership in Pittsburgh, Boston, and St. Louis. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas. (with Lana Stein and Robin Jones)
1996. “Problem Definition and Policy Agendas: Shaping the Education Agenda in Boston.” Policy Studies Journal 24:3.
1990. The Politics of Plant Closings. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.
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Education
PhD, 1988, Political Science
University of Wisconsin-Madison -
Contact
617.373.3391 j.portz@northeastern.edu -
Address
902 Renaissance Park
360 Huntington Avenue
Boston, MA 02115 -
Office Hours
Wednesday 1:00-3:00
Thursday 12:00-2:00
and by Appointment
In-person or Zoom
