This report contains detailed descriptions of three program recommendations regarding public school choice. The recommendations are a result of a study conducted by the New Jersey Department of Education, in which public school choice and magnet schools were examined. The three recommended programs described are (1) Intradistrict Choice Program;…

To increase parent involvement and meet the need for adult help in classrooms, a preschool director implemented a practicum in a church-owned, nondenominational preschool serving 250 children from an upper-middle-class community in the Northeast. The intervention offered a wide range of parent involvement activities, including the formation of a…

This document represents the New Jersey State Library Technology Plan for 1999-2001. Contents include: the mission statement; technology planning process of the Technology Committee (convened by the State Library); specific goals of the Technology Plan 1999-2001; technology assumptions for the operational library and statewide library services;…

Suggests ways to inexpensively expand the scope and quality of career services. At Montclair State College career services staff developed quality intercampus alliances, generated nonbudgeted income, and procured free and inexpensive career materials. Nonbudgeted income came from charging fees for programs and developing grants to obtain more…

Describes the live virtual reference service, Q and A NJ (Question and Answer New Jersey), strategies used to meet the challenges of day-to-day management, scaled growth and quality control. Describes how it began; how long it took; how to manage a large project (constant communication; training and practice; transcript analysis and privacy;…

Many colleges in New Jersey are opposed to the for-profit University of Phoenix plan to offer six degree programs within that state. The university currently enrolls 50,000 on 87 campuses in 13 states, Canada, and Puerto Rico and has formally applied for licensing in this and three other northeastern states. Thirteen colleges operate within a…

If professional learning communities offer opportunities for improving the teaching and learning process, then developing strong professional development school (PDS) partnerships establish an appropriate framework for that purpose. PDS partnerships, however, can be less than effective without proper planning and discussion about the aims of those…

This report focuses on two programs launched by the U. S. Office of Education (USOE) for personnel development in vocational education. The two programs (section 552, Leadership Development Awards and section 553, State Systems for Personnel Development), created under part F of the Education Professions Development Act (EPDA), are examined in 11…

Somerset County Technical Institute and Somerset County College jointly operate and administer a two-year associate program for an applied science degree which was designed primarily to avoid program duplication and competition for funds and students. (Author/BP)

Describes the essential characteristics, development, implementation, and anticipated benefits of an innovative New Jersey program that will allow local districts to hire and train for certification prospective teachers who have college degrees and subject area expertise. (PGD)

Project IDEA (Innovation Dissemination for the Education of Adults), a 2-year experimental program in the utilization of innovation, was designed to demonstrate the feasibility of a comprehensive strategy for disseminating and facilitating the utilization of selected program innovations in adult education. Implementation of this strategy involved…

All New Jersey students in grades 3, 6, 9, and 11 are tested annually in basic reading and computation skills using the New Jersey Minimum Basic Skills (MBS) Tests. The MBS testing program was initiated in 1976. The former Educational Assessment Program tests were used during the tramsition, and test development activities were begun in 1977.…

The primary purpose of the project was to explore the possibilities of bringing into the Adult Basic Education (ABE) system the systematic and orderly introduction of volunteer use, through a planning mechanism called a Task Force. A secondary purpose was to investigate change strategies applicable to the existing ABE network. The activities of…

The System for Trenton's Educational Planning (STEP), a set of procedures for strategic planning, is described. The background to the project and the desired goals which led to STEP are reviewed, and the major components of the annual planning cycle, including assessment, base case planning, policy formulation, project design, simulation of…

Magnet schools gained prominence in education in the 1970s as a tool for achieving voluntary desegregation in lieu of forced busing. The theory behind magnet schools as a desegregation tool is simple: Create a school so distinctive and appealing--so magnetic--that it will draw a diverse range of families from throughout the community eager to…