THE RACE FOR MAYOR This is the third in a series of editorials on the campaign for mayor of Sacramento. These editorials will outline issues facing the city that voters should expect the candidates to address as the campaign unfolds.

Officially, the mayor of Sacramento has no role in the public schools that educate the city's children. But across the country, even in cities where the public schools aren't part of city government, successful mayors realize that the success of a city depends on the quality of its schools. Sacramento should be no exception.

The city has about 80,000 children ages 5 to 17. The bulk of the school-age population (about 50,000 kids) is concentrated in the Sacramento City Unified School District. The city also includes the new Twin Rivers Unified district, the Robla Elementary district, Natomas Unified and a chunk of Elk Grove Unified.

Mayors of big cities take very different approaches in how they work to improve their public schools.

Some keep things low-key. They develop relationships with school officials. They harness city departments, such as parks and recreation, to support after-school and summer programs for school-age children. They promote pre-school. They provide specially trained police officers for the schools and help with truancy centers. They champion summer jobs and help create public-private partnerships.

Others take on a more high-profile role. They use the bully pulpit of their office to shape public discourse about education. They bring interests together in public and engage residents in public school issues. Some appoint a commission to involve the larger community and recommend specific reforms. Some recruit and campaign for slates of candidates to school boards. Sacramento Mayor Joe Serna Jr. took this kind of approach in Sacramento in the mid-1990s.

Still others act very aggressively. In cities from Chicago to Boston to New York to Washington, D.C., to Detroit to Philadelphia, mayors in recent years have sought authority to approve charter schools and to appoint school superintendents and school board members. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa of Los Angeles has unsuccessfully sought such authority over public schools there.

But whether their approach is low-key or aggressive, mayors take on education issues because they see the public schools as key to their city's social and economic well-being. One reason schools are so important: They are a crucial factor in making cities attractive to middle-income families.

That's a compelling issue for Sacramento. The city has concentrations of families with incomes of less than $50,000 a year (54 percent of households) and of more than $75,000 a year (28 percent of households). Only 18 percent of households fall into the middle-income range. Quality public schools are a key element in expanding the number of middle-income families living in the city of Sacramento.

As voters appraise the candidates for mayor, Heather Fargo and Kevin Johnson, they should ask the candidates to outline their views on the mayor's proper role in improving public schools. And they should expect answers to some specifics, too. Such as:

• What do you see as strengths in Sacramento's public schools?

• What do you see as weaknesses?

• Name three things that you'd do to tackle issues facing the city's public schools.

Voters shouldn't let the candidates off the hook just because the mayor has no power to dictate changes in the public schools. Making Sacramento a better place to live is the mayor's job, and improved public schools are vital to that task. Mayors across the country have realized that and made it their business to get involved in education. Sacramento's next mayor should do the same.