College access and success programs, which typically take place during out-of-school time, range widely in their size, target demographics, and services offered. Although concerted funding and energy have been dedicated to college access programs, the field suffers from a significant research and practice gap. Studies have demonstrated that…

This qualitative historical single-case study examines how a practitioner-directed approach to professional development for teachers resulted in successful technology integration in a newly unified school district in California's Central Valley. The study details the process of creating and implementing a professional development plan for newly…

Recent studies have posited that K-12 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education should go beyond traditional subject silos and take an interdisciplinary approach that integrates these core subjects into a cohesive curriculum to foster authentic problem-solving skills. The purpose of this study was to field test one of five…

Supporting college and career readiness among youth who encounter significant academic and life challenges requires innovative strategies to help them envision their futures, leverage their strengths and develop dispositions that promote positive trajectories. For youth development professionals who develop and implement novel programmatic…

This brief, the third in a series produced by the California College Promise Project (CCPP) at WestEd, describes research conducted by the CCPP on the relationship between the 2017 legislation "Community Colleges: California College Promise" (AB19) and the structure of local College Promise programs. The analysis examines College Promise…

Formal mentoring has been an effective approach to mitigate challenges facing underserved youth and contributes to observable improvements in behavior, relationships, and emotional well-being. In recent years, virtual mentoring has emerged as a promising way to expand the provision of mentoring. By engaging virtually, mentorship programs can…

The K-8 Early Implementers Initiative has found that careful planning is critical. With thin planning, unexpected detours or dead ends are likely. However, with solid planning, districts are more likely to achieve their implementation goals and may discover some express lanes for their implementation journey. This evaluation report documents…

Increasingly, state departments of education, school districts, and high schools are recognizing that many students graduate from high school underprepared for college-level coursework in mathematics. Many are referred to remedial education when they arrive at college. To help students become better prepared for college and avoid remedial courses…

In this paper we investigate the impact of a statewide program aimed at better aligning K-12 to higher education and improving college readiness. We replicate an earlier study focused on the effects of this program at one campus by employing detailed administrative data on the census of California students that enroll at all twenty-three campuses…

In the United States, approximately one in ten adults -- nearly 36 million people -- lack basic literacy and numeracy skills, while 27 million adults lack a high school diploma. Over the last decade, new models for adult education have emerged that integrate basic skills education with workforce and college-readiness training. These integrated…

The transition from middle school to high school is an important developmental period to investigate because of the negative impact it has on youths' academics. The purpose of this study was to investigate Latino youths' academic achievement prior to, during, and after the transition to high school, and gender differences in youths' achievement…

Over the past three years, California State University, Bakersfield received NSF funding to support hands-on explorations in "network security" and "cryptography" through Research Experience Vitalizing Science-University Program (REVS-UP). In addition to the summer bridge component, the grant included development of…

Two universities and their prospective partnership schools collected data to help ascertain the perceived readiness of school-university Professional Development School (PDS) partnerships. The measurement tool, ''The Professional Development School Exploration and Assessment'' (PDSEA) includes a five-step process that makes use of survey and focus…

Despite some cuts to the nation's oldest Federal College Access Programs, known as the TRIO programs (e.g., Upward Bound), new education policies have emphasized college and career readiness. In 2010, Congress approved the College Access Challenge Grant Program, which aims to increase the number of low-income students who are ready for college.…

To support teachers in enhancing ocean literacy, the Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education (C-MORE) has developed a series of portable, hands-on science kits on selected topics in oceanography. This paper provides an overview of kit content, describes how the kits were developed, and evaluates their efficacy as a curriculum…