picture of Steven J. Klees

  • Steven J. Klees
  • Professor; International Education Policy
  • Room: 3112E Benjamin
  • Phone: 301-405-2212

Ph.D., Stanford University
Joined faculty in 1999


Teaching and Research Interests

Dr. Klees' work has focused on comparative and international education, with a disciplinary specialization in economics. He has taught at Cornell University, Stanford University, Florida State University and the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte in Brazil. He was also a Fulbright Scholar on two occasions at the Federal University of Bahia in Brazil. Throughout this time he has been working on research and development projects for organizations like UNESCO, UNICEF, the World Bank, USAID, and a variety of country Ministries and non-governmental organizations. Most of his work has been in Latin America but he also has worked in a number of countries in Africa and Southeast Asia. Dr. Klees is as interested in U.S. policy and practice as he is in that of other countries and has worked with school districts, State governments and national educational organizations. His long-term research interests have been on issues concerning the political economy of educational policy and social change. He is especially interested in how gender, race, and class intersect with educational and social inequalities.

Selected Publications

Journal Articles
  • Klees, S. (2002) World Bank Education Policy: New Rhetoric, Old Ideology. International Journal of Educational Development, 22, 451-74.


  • Klees, S. (2001) Knowledge, Power, and Politics: The World Bank and Education. Norrag News, 28.


  • Klees, S. (2001) World Bank Development Policy: A SAP in SWAPs Clothing. Current Issues in Comparative Education, 3, (2).


  • Klees, S. & Rizzini, I. (Summer 2000). Child Rights and Children's Involvement in the Making of a New Constitution in Brazil. Cultural Survival Quarterly
  • Klees, S. (1999, April). Privatization and Neoliberalism: Ideology and Evidence in Rhetorical Reforms. Current Issues in Comparative Education, 1,(2).
  • Klees, S. (1998, November). NGOs: Progressive Force or Neoliberal Tool?" Current Issues in Comparative Education, 1(1).
  • Klees, S. & Verhine, R. (1996, January). Comprehensive Education Analysis: Workshop Reflections. UNICEF Education News, 6(1).
  • Dewees, A. & Klees, S. (1995). Social Movements and Social Change: A Transformation of Policy for Street and Working Children in Brazil. Comparative Education Review, 39(1), 76-100.
  • Klees, S. (1991). The Economics of Education: Is That All There is? Comparative Education Review, 35(4), 721-34.
  • Easton, P. & Klees, S. (1990). Education and the Economy: Considering Alternative Perspectives. Prospects, 20(4), 413-28.
  • Klees, S. (1986). Planning and Policy Analysis in Education: What Can Economics Tell Us? Comparative Education Review, 30(4), 574-607.
Books
  • Wells, S. & Klees, S. (1980). The Economics of Health and Development. NY: Praeger Publications.
  • Jamison, D., Klees, S. & Wells, S. (1978). The Costs of Educational Media: Guidelines for Planning and Evaluation. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage Publications, 1978.
Chapters in Books
  • Klees, S., Rizzini, I. & Dewees, A. (2000). A New Paradigm for Social Change: Social Movements and the Transformation of Policy for Street and Working Children in Brazil. In R. Mickelson (Ed.) Children on the Streets of the Americas: Homelessness and Education in the United States, Brazil, and Cuba. London: Routledge.
  • Stromquist, N., Klees, S. & Miske, S. (1999). USAID Efforts to Expand and Improve Girls' Primary Education in Guatemala. In R. Cortina and N. P. Stromquist (Eds.) Education and Gender in Latin America. NY: Garland.
  • Klees, S. (1994). The Economics of Educational Planning. In T. Husen, and T. Neville Postlethwaite (Eds.) The International Encyclopedia of Education (2nd ed). Oxford: Pergamon.
  • Klees, S. (1994). The Economics of Educational Technology. In T. Husen and T. Neville Postlethwaite (Eds.) The International Encyclopedia of Education (2nd ed.). Oxford: Pergamon.
  • Klees, S. (1996). The Economics of Educational Technology. In T. Plomp and D. Ely (Eds.) The International Encyclopedia of Educational Technology (2nd ed.) Oxford: Elsevier Science.
  • Easton, P. & Klees, S. (1992). Conceptualizing the Role of Education in the Economy. In R. Arnove, P. Altbach, and G. Kelly (Eds.) Emerging Issues in Education: Comparative Perspectives. New York: Macmillan.

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Research Reports (Selected)
  • Cobbes, J., Klees, S., Dewees, A. Hawkins, J. Holder, L. & Holmes, D. (1998). EduTech 2000: An Economic Assessment of Comprehensive Computer-Based School Reform in Barbados. Washington, D.C.: Inter-American Development Bank.
  • Stromquist, N., Klees, S. & Miske, S. (1998). Focus on Girls: USAID Programs and Policies in Education -- Guatemala Case Study. Washington, D.C.: USAID.
  • Klees, A., Matangala, A., Spronk, B. & Visser, J. (1997). Reaching Unreached Learners in Mozambique. Paris: UNESCO.
  • Panyanuwat, et al. (1996). Nonformal Lower Secondary Education Project in Thailand: Final Report. Manila: Asian Development Bank.
Selected Presentations
  • Higher Education in Latin America: Political Economy Perspectives. S. Klees and A. Siqueira. Presented at the Latin American Studies Association: 2000, Miami, March 12-15, 2000.
  • Knowledge Management as Ideology: Legitimating Education and Development Choices. Presented at the Comparative and International Education Society Annual Meeting, San Antonio, March 7-12, 2000.
  • The World Bank's 1999 Education Sector Strategy: A Critical Analysis. Presented at the Comparative and International Education Society Annual Meeting, San Antonio, March 7-12, 2000
  • Education, Economics, and Society: Myths and Possibilities. Paper presented at the Oxford International Conference on Education and Development, Oxford, U.K. September 9-13, 1999.
  • Developing a Participatory Impact Assessment Plan. Presented at the Impact Assessment Conference on the CGIAR Systemwide Agriculture Research Program on Participatory Research and Gender Analysis, Quito, Ecuador, September 8-12, 1998.
Academic Honors and Awards
  • Phi Beta Kappa
  • B.A. Magna Cum Laude
  • U.S. Office of Education Fellowship in the Economics of Education, 1970-1973
  • Comparative & International Education Society's Outstanding Scholarship Award, 1987
  • Fulbright Scholar Award, Federal University of Bahia, Brazil, 1987 and 1992

Professional Associations

  • American Economics Association
  • American Educational Research Association
  • Comparative and International Education Society
Selected Professional Activities
  • Florida High School- In 1999, I was part of a team that evaluated the cost-effectiveness of this web-based State-wide high school.
  • Save the Children - In 1998, I gave a workshop for staff members from four countries on cost-effectiveness analysis for women and child development programs.
  • Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) - In 1998, I gave a workshop on participatory evaluation of rural development projects.
  • Inter-American Development bank - In 1998 I was part of a team that did an economic assessment of a proposal for intensive use of computers to promote national educational reform in Barbados.
  • Leon County Council of Economic Advisors - In 1996 I was appointed to this seven-person body which aimed to improve the economic advice in county government.
  • UNICEF - In 1995 I ran a workshop in Brazil that brought together Brazilians and professionals from six Portuguese-speaking African countries to study educational sector analysis for national, state, and local levels.
  • Harvard University Institute for International Development and USAID - In 1994, through Harvard and through Florida State University, I worked in El Salvador on two projects. One looked at the connections between education, the labor market, and the economy and the other at financing education.
  • The World Bank - In 1993 I worked with their Higher Education Group to develop alternative approaches to the economic evaluation of resource allocation choices in education.
  • UNICEF - In 1992-1993 I was part of a Florida State University team contracted to analyze the situation of street and working children worldwide and the educational initiatives that could help them.
  • The World Bank - In 1991, I worked in Nicaragua as part of a Public Sector Expenditure Review team, analyzing education sector expenditures and policies. In 1992, I worked for the Bank as part of an effort to examine alternatives to standard economic techniques for resource allocation in education.
Dr. Klees' Curriculum Vitae PDF Icon

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Courses Taught PDF Icon