Boyce Brown's professional career has centered around school administration, non-profit administration, education law, teaching, and research. He earned two Masters and a PhD (in education policy) from the University of Hawaii. He is currently a research fellow with the Hawaii Educational Policy Center.

Contents: The Uneasy Alliance between the Corporate Elite and the Movement Conservatives (1970s) - A Nation at Risk and a Decade of Reports (1980s-1990s) - Federal Education Policy Conflicts over Standards-based Education during the Bush and Clinton Years (1988-2000) - Hawaii, a Case Study (1991-present) - No Child Left Behind, Race to the Top, and Common Core.