Getting and keeping accreditation is critical for almost all colleges in the United States. Accreditation is third-party validation that a college meets minimum standards. Not only is institutional accreditation required for participation in federal student loan programs, but without accreditation, it is hard (if not impossible) to be authorized…

This article traces the evolution of higher education accreditation and the impact of modern partisan critiques that challenge its traditional values. For example, the Trump-led Department of Education (ED) introduced new rules resulting in the end of regional boundaries related to accreditation. Moreover, questions have emerged related to…

This brief is one in a series highlighting state policies, regulations, practices, laws, or other tools intended to create the necessary conditions for school and/or district turnaround. Each brief includes an overview of the relevant turnaround tool, its development process, its impact, and lessons learned that could assist other education…

Academic institutions modified their financial conflict of interest policies (FCOI) in response to the Public Health Service's (PHS) 2011 revised regulations (42 CFR 50 Subpart F) on "Responsibility of Applicants for Promoting Objectivity in Research and Responsible Prospective Contractors" (45 CFR 94), which were to go into effect on…

Creating private school vouchers for special education students--programs that are largely unchallenged in court, unlike other publicly financed tuition vouchers--can be the perfect way to clear a path for other students to get school options, according to school choice proponents. At least seven states--Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Ohio,…

This report identifies the states with current or pending state-level end-of-course assessment (EOC) programs, the subjects in which EOCs are administered in the states, and the EOCs (if any) students must pass to graduate from high school. Twenty-two states currently administer one or more EOCs to all students in an EOC course. This number will…

State-level battles over changes in education policy have shifted in many places from legislative chambers to courthouses, as unions and other critics of new laws challenge them on the grounds that they violate state constitutions and worker contracts. Republican governors and lawmakers--their ranks bolstered by the 2010 elections--won passage…

Jeb Bush campaigned for governor on a clear and bracing set of education reforms in 1998. Having won office, he immediately pursued a dual-track strategy for reforming Florida's K-12 education system: standards and accountability for public schools, choice and options for parents. Florida lawmakers followed those reforms with additional measures.…

By now people are all too familiar with the disheartening numbers: approximately 7,000 students drop out each day, which means nearly one-third of high school students will not graduate with their peers. The statistics are even more staggering for minority and low-income students, especially in the nation's largest urban districts, where less than…

This report looks at actions Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) states have taken in recent years to improve the connections between public two- and four-year colleges, and it offers suggestions on what needs to happen next. To best understand the progress in their states, policymakers and education leaders should ask about the effectiveness…

This paper provides information about the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test[R] (FCAT). The purpose of the exam is to: (1) Determine prospective high school graduates' mastery of the state curriculum; (2) Encourage districts and schools to identify and serve students at risk of academic failure; (3) Provide data to state policymakers on student…

To address key policy and programmatic questions and help improve student and system performance, states must work to link data across the early childhood, postsecondary and workforce (P-20/workforce) spectrum and share this information with appropriate stakeholders. This issue brief highlights current efforts in California, Florida, Indiana, and…

The Employment Retention and Advancement (ERA) project was undertaken to identify effective strategies for helping low-income parents work more steadily and advance in the labor market. The 15 ERA demonstration projects that were operating in nine states (California, Florida, Illinois, Minnesota, New York, Oregon, South Carolina; Tennessee, and…