The identification of students with specific learning disabilities has evolved since the reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEIA) in 2004. This reauthorization gave state agencies parameters that disallowed using the severe discrepancy model for identification as a stand-alone method. In response to…

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) puts responsibility for improving student outcomes back where some say it has always belonged--under states' purview. No longer will prescriptive federal requirements dictate how states should identify, support, and turn around the lowest-performing schools and districts. Instead, states are empowered to craft…

In 2012, the Credit When It's Due (CWID) initiative was launched by the Funders Collaborative to "encourage partnerships of community colleges and universities to significantly expand programs that award associate degrees to transfer students when the student completes the requirements for the associate degree while pursuing a bachelor's…

The civic education policy framework and gap analysis tool are intended to guide state leaders as they address the complexities of preparing students for college, career and civic life. They allow for adaptation to state- and site-specific circumstances and may be adopted in whole or in piecemeal fashion, according to states' individual…

There's an emerging trend in the national college completion movement. A group of small but powerful Student Success Centers is creating statewide impact in states traditionally devoid of a strong centralized tradition of community college governance. Growing directly out of a decade of hard work to dramatically boost student completion rates in…

"Student Success Center Toolkit" is a compilation of materials organized to assist Student Success Center directors as they staff, launch, operate, and sustain Centers. The toolkit features materials created and used by existing Centers, such as staffing and budgeting templates, launch materials, sample meeting agendas, and fundraising…

During the past year, the state of Michigan has made noteworthy changes in the accountability system used for NCLB. Partly as a result of these changes, the number of schools identified for restructuring has changed since the previous year. In addition, the state has continued providing various types of assistance to schools in restructuring. This…

A plan for educational reform in Michigan to increase accountability. (RA)

Few educational responsibilities have greater far-reaching importance to the people of a State than the establishment of a sound local district structure for administering the schools. Keeping that structure adapted to changing conditions in society by reorganization of small ineffective districts into larger administrative units more capable of…

Surveys, interviews, and site visits were used to evaluate 10 years of tech prep in Michigan and identify models of excellent practice. Results showed community colleges lagging behind high schools in implementation. Best sign for the future is stakeholders' view that tech prep is not a program, but a process of educational reform. (SK)

The major purpose of this descriptive report is to provide an overview of the structure, capacity, and roles of educational service agencies (ESAs) across five states--Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin--in the Great Lakes region, within the context of the broader statewide systems of support for educational improvement and progress.…

A study examined the practices of 121 school-based intervention teams from Michigan, Illinois, and Wisconsin. Findings revealed several positive practices by teams from all states; however, teams from Illinois displayed consistent superiority across several measures. Discussion focuses on implications for practice and educational and legal reform.…

"Childhood Programs and Practices in the First Decade of Life" presents research findings on the effects of early childhood programs and practices in the first decade of life and their implications for policy development and reform. Leading scholars in the multidisciplinary field of human development and in early childhood learning…

A research project investigated the dissemination practices of nine State education agencies (SEA) in order to identify useful techniques which could be adopted by other groups seeking to implement change. Interviewers conducted site visits in Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Montana, New York, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania; local…

An 18-member Collaborative of Michigan educational organizations and agencies was formed in October 1994. The Collaborative was committed to systemic reform that included inclusive relationships, challenging ideas, and changed practice to ensure better teaching and learning for all students. The Collaborative made the assumption that it would take…