What I believe undermined the entire concept of local control of our schools is how the Teacher's Unions used their regional and national muscle to protect their interests (including some very bad teachers). It was all about merit pay and Unions will die on that hill.  

A court ruling exposed the hidden donations.   
"...When Jeffco United disclosed its donors in response to Spencer's ruling, it was revealed that teachers unions played a large role in the recall effort. They provided over $265,000 to Jeffco United. The National Education Association donated over half of that amount. Its total donation to Jeffco United totaled $150,000. The Colorado Education Association provided most of the rest, donating a total of $113,500.[28]..."
https://ballotpedia.org/Jeffco_Public_Schools_recall,_Colorado_(2015)