A leadership academy is a formal professional learning opportunity for current school leaders, focused on augmenting knowledge and skills, increasing specialization, and refreshing leadership practices. States interested in supporting leadership academies through federal or other funding sources can look to current models of leadership academies…

Examines the intersection of policy and practice in the areas of systemic reform and special education. Provides examples of statewide system reform efforts in Kentucky, Massachusetts, Oregon, and Vermont, as well as examples of how children with disabilities are included in the total reform efforts. (Author/CR)

This report comprises edited versions of the presentations from the 17 participants in a conference under the sponsoreship of the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory. The conference was designed to enable policy-makers, educators, and business people to share perspectives on the most effective methods for identifying and collecting data that…

This report is one of a series of statements relating to the Oregon Board of Education priorities for Oregon education. It first identifies the factors contributing to the financial problem and then proposes activities to (1) simplify the structure by which education finance operates, (2) stabilize financing of the education program, (3)…

In 1987, Oregon moved to an outcome-based approach to teacher preparation and licensure, insisting on evidence of learning gains by students taught as one of the accomplishments that teachers need to demonstrate. Oregon's program and its implications for teacher education and educational improvement are discussed. (SLD)

The Oregon Report Card is an annual portrait of the state's public schools. The first five sections describe statewide progress toward implementing Oregon's Educational Act for the 21st Century, some of the state's exemplary school-improvement programs, and the clear relationship between Oregon's program and national education goals. The remaining…

This second annual report card on the status of Oregon public education describes the implementation of the Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century. Information is presented in the following areas--school finance, staff characteristics and salaries, student demographics and achievement, student participation in programs and services, and…

"The Achiever" is a monthly publication for parents and community leaders. Each issue contains news and information about school improvement in the United States. Highlights of this issue include: (1) "No Child Left Behind": Key Focus in State of the Union; (2) A Shining Example: Using Mix of Strategies, Stanton Elementary…

Oregon's School Improvement and Professional Development Program (SIPD) was created to: (1) assist local district goal achievement; (2) establish site committees to initiate school improvement and shared decision making; and (3) provide professional development opportunities. The following outcomes are evaluated in this report: development of…

This report describes the initial efforts and current status of implementing supplemental educational services (SES) in the Northwest Region states, identifies information gaps and areas of further inquiry, and delineates concerns and challenges for the state education agencies. It is an exploratory effort to identify issues for deeper examination…

The Community Transition Team Model guides the process of systematic program change in secondary special education and transition programs in Oregon. The model uses a management-by-objectives paradigm for implementing its principles, which include local control, a developmental perspective on change, a focus on program capacity, and networking…

Second-year outcomes of the Oregon School Improvement and Professional Development Project, which included 54 new and 32 continuing program sites, are presented in this report. Interviews with 187 staff members from 24 sites generated information on program impacts on goal development, assessment activities, school-based management, and…

We review a plan that attracted the attention of public sector planners everywhere, Oregon's 1989 "Oregon Shines: An Economic Strategy for the Pacific Century". In particular, we focus on Oregon's aspirations for world-class workforce quality; a status that the state's planners argued would contribute to a host of other outcomes that…

This year the Center on Education Policy (CEP) analyzed data on the achievement of different groups of students in two distinct ways. First, it looked at grade 4 test results to determine whether the performance of various groups improved at three achievement levels--basic and above, proficient and above, and advanced. Second, it looked at gaps…

Oregon is in the process of raising expectations for its students. The state will now require students to prove their proficiency through a series of classroom assignments and state tests. Students who achieve the grade-10 standards on the required assignments and tests will receive a Certificate of Initial Mastery, and those who achieve the…