Shanfeld, Randye.

The proposed study intended to identify the public education agenda and the success of implementation of this agenda of four Presidents: Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, William Clinton, and George W. Bush. In addition, the study aimed to indentify if any of the above listed Presidents can be categorized as charismatic leaders as defined by Charismatic Leadership Theory and if this categorization can be linked to the determined success or failure of the agenda implementation. This was done using two research methods, document and content analysis, on such documents as presidential speeches and writings, speeches and writings of the Secretary of Education, biographies and autobiographies, editorials from three major newspapers, writings from people working closely with the Presidents, writing of political analysts, and writing of Senate and House majority leadership. The study found the education agendas of the four presidents, and those education items that were passed by Congress. The study also found that Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and Clinton were found to be Charismatic Leaders, while George W. Bush was not. A conclusion was made with this data that there were no connection between Charismatic Leadership Theory and the passage of presidential education agendas.