Situated within global shifts toward decentralized governance, this case study examines the power dynamics shaping collective parental involvement in municipal education. Rather than assuming empowerment as an inherent outcome, the analysis approaches governance as a negotiated arena characterized by institutional ambiguity (Hajer, 2003), where participatory expansion coexists with preserved policy sovereignty. Power is conceptualized within a spatial and class based context, embedded in control over non-substitutable resources such as regulatory authority and local policy making. The concept of Selective Institutional Accessibility explains how cultural homophily facilitates proximity to decision making while local authorities operate as strategic steerers (Rhodes, 1996), balancing democratic legitimacy with managerial control (Pierre & Peters, 2000). A qualitative case study (Yin, 2018) was conducted in a high socioeconomic municipality (Cluster 9). Data from fifteen semi-structured interviews were analyzed through constructivist grounded theory (Charmaz, 2014) to trace how accessibility is negotiated and bounded within this institutional context. Findings identify a four component mechanism:
1. Cultural homophily converts collective expertise into selective accessibility but produces asymmetric dependence between parent leaders and municipal officials.
2. Ritualized participation generates legitimacy without local authorities reallocating strategic authority.
3. An informal bypass space grants direct accessibility to a parental core.
4. Parent leaders function as mediators who stabilize institutional boundaries.
The study demonstrates how policy sovereignty is maintained through relational and symbolic mechanisms rather than formal authority alone, offering a case based analytical framework for examining decentralized education systems.

Authors:
Sharon Shani, Tel Aviv University, Israel
Audrey Addi Raccah, Tel Aviv University, Israel

About the Presenter(s)
Sharon Shani is a PhD candidate at Tel Aviv University and a Compulsory Education Attendance Supervisor at the Israeli Ministry of Education. Her research focuses on collective parental involvement, local governance, and educational policy.

Audrey Addi-Raccah, she is a professor of sociology of education and Department of Educational Management at Tel Aviv University. One of her research interests include relationship between schools and their environments, and parental involvement.

Connect on Linkedin
https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharon-shani-b020602a6

Additional website of interest
https://ece.iafor.org/presentation/submission108730/

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