School Networks, Autonomy–Accountability Trade-Offs, and Socioeconomic Context: A Mixed-Methods Study in Israel

School networks have expanded as governance arrangements combining autonomy with accountability, yet evidence remains fragmented on how operator-led school-chain affiliation shapes outcomes and school climate across socioeconomic contexts. This mixed-methods study integrates administrative and survey data from 1,847 Israeli secondary schools (2015–2019) with interviews with 16 principals who had worked in network-affiliated and standalone schools and two network heads. Network affiliation was associated with advanced matriculation indicators, but differences were largely intertwined with socioeconomic positioning and sector. Structural equation modeling (SEM) showed that civic and social engagement mediated associations between network-affiliation status and both positive school climate and involvement in violence; a multigroup analysis indicated that structural relations varied by socioeconomic status (SES). Qualitative findings showed that networks offered mentoring, professional support, and budgetary clarity while increasing reporting demands and overhead constraints; standalone schools enabled wider local initiative but often provided weaker systemic support. The study extends the School Autonomy with Accountability framework by identifying civic and social engagement as a meso-level mechanism and SES as a boundary condition, supporting equity-sensitive network design.