Cite as: Rogers, R. & Pole, K. (2010). A state takeover: The language of a school district crisis. In L. MacGillivray (Ed.) Literacy in times of crisis: Practices and perspectives, p. 138 – 158. NY: Routledge. A State Takeover: The Language of a School District Crisis Rebecca Rogers and Kathryn Pole Introduction The PuďliĐ “Đhools aƌe iŶ a state of Đƌisis, asseƌts FƌaŶĐis “laLJ, the ŵaLJoƌ of St. Louis, in his blog on December 15th, 2006, in the context of deliberations around tax-credits, vouchers and a state takeover of the provisionally accredited city school district. During the months between December 2006 and February 2007, politicians, the media, and citizens on all sides of the issues repeatedly referred to the St. Louis Public Schools ;“LP“Ϳ as iŶ Đƌisis. As the story of St. Louis shoǁs, this atŵospheƌe of a Đƌisis pƌoǀides the pƌetedžt to suspend democratic policies and usher in solutions that otherwise would be deemed unacceptable. As two literacy educators and researchers concerned with issues of educational equity and democracy, we watched as event after event unfolded in the developing crisis of SLPS. Our story here represents a form of problem-based praxis where we were both inside and outside the problem. As insiders to education, we had a stance; we were against the takeover of SLPS, and attended public hearings, wrote letters to the editor, and spoke out against takeover plans. As outsiders to the city of St. Louis, some of the politics and history were not as transparent as they might have been. As educators and citizens who believe education is vital to a healthy democracy, we embarked on this work as praxis—theory, practice, reflection and action (Croteau, Hoynes, & Ryan, 2005). Using the tools of critical discourse analysis (e.g. Fairclough, 1992; Scollon, 2008) and critical policy analysis (Lipman, 2004, 2007; Woodside-Jiron, 2004), we asked, Hoǁ ǁas this Đƌisis ĐoŶstƌuĐted thƌough puďliĐ disĐouƌse aŶd liteƌaĐLJ pƌaĐtiĐes? We explored the interplay of interests, social roles, and traditions that contributed to the construction of a crisis as we examined the use of language and literacy circulating around a crisis in the SLPS. We collected and examined various texts produced in the debate over the state takeover. The discourses around the crisis occurred within a larger set of literacy practices (e.g. the production and dissemination of official reports, transcripts of public hearings, speeches, news reports, blogs, letters to the editor, emails circulated by activists, protests, and songs). As such, the discourses and literacy practices expand our reading-speaking-writing definition to the ways in which people critically access and assess the multiple genres, texts, and discourses that constructed and were constructed by the sĐhool Đƌisis. We focus on the pivotal date of February 15, 2007, the date that the State of Missouri Board of Education voted to set in motion a plan to transfer control of the SLPS system to a politically- appointed three-member board, disempowering the uƌďaŶ sĐhool distƌiĐt’s eleĐted sĐhool