School Partner Program in Paraná: privatization of public schools and resistance

Abstract

This article analyzes the School Partner Program, established in the state of Paraná by State Law No. 22,006/2024, examining its structure, governmental justifications, pilot schools, public consultations, and the mobilization against the program, synthesized in the "Don't Sell My School" movement. Based on documentary and bibliographic research, the study, spanning 2022 to 2025, begins with the following problem: how did the program impact the democratic dynamics of state public schools and mobilize resistance from school communities? Using frameworks from New Public Management, educational privatization, PPPs, and democratic management, it discusses how the government proposal strained fundamental principles of public schools, especially regarding autonomy, participation, and social control. It is concluded that the case reveals the contemporary contradictions between managerial policies and the defense of public schools as democratic institutions, and that, more than the implementation of public-private partnerships, the privatization of public schools in Paraná is underway, a policy to which there has been great resistance from the community, largely led by the APP-Sindicato (teachers' union).