Efforts across higher education, economic development, workforce development and secondary education address alignment, which the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia (SCHEV) Council defines as helping individuals prepare for and obtain meaningful careers while also meeting employer needs. Specifically, the relationship between workforce…

In the five years following implementation of a chat reference service at James Madison University (JMU), the service proved very popular but was not closely assessed for quality of service. Using grounded theory and qualitative data analysis techniques, a comprehensive assessment effort was begun in earnest and is in progress. Preliminary results…

Education is essential for solving the complex water-related challenges facing society. The Learning Enhanced Watershed Assessment System (LEWAS) and the Online Watershed Learning System (OWLS) provide data creation and data sharing infrastructures, respectively, that combine to form an environmental learning tool. This system collects, integrates…

Locally controlled public schools are one of the cornerstones of our nation's democracy, yet many schools are not preparing students for success. Far too many students are not graduating, and many of those who do graduate are woefully unprepared for college or a meaningful career. Successfully initiating and sustaining meaningful improvements in…

This is the final external evaluation report prepared by SRI International for the Rural Math Excel Partnership (RMEP) project, an investing in innovation (i3) development project funded by the U.S. Department of Education. Operated by Virginia Advanced Study Strategies, Inc. (VASS), the RMEP project included six rural school districts (LEAs) in…

This guidebook aims to provide clear, non-technical descriptions of procedures for evaluating the effectiveness of local gifted education programs in Virginia. The procedures were developed with both external and internal evaluations in mind. The evaluation process is described in four phases: planning, collecting the data, interpreting the data…

The College Board, NASSP and ASCA believe that the principal-counselor relationship is a dynamic and organic relationship that evolves over time in response to the ever-changing needs of a school. The goal of an effective principal-counselor relationship is to use the strength of the relationship to collaboratively lead school reform efforts to…

Educational Theory into Practice Software (ETIPS) is an online case study program in the testbed stage of development intended for use by professors of education administration. The program is being developed by Sara Dexter and Pamela D. Tucker of the University of Virginia and is being tested by various other universities throughout Virginia. As…

As part of a continuing assessment of educational needs in a seven-state region, researchers conducted a verification study to check the validity of educational needs first identified in fiscal year (FY) 1980. The seven states comprise Alabama, Kentucky, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia. This report describes assessment…

This paper reports on a computer initiative implemented by a metropolitan school district in Virginia. The initiative began in 1995 when the school district of 44,000 students funded 5 computers and a color printer for each elementary classroom in 34 schools. The goals of the initiative focused on: increasing student performance; addressing…

This document contains the full results of a public-opinion survey of Virginia residents on education issues. The survey was conducted by telephone, using a randomly selected sample of adults. The sample for this poll was 804 respondents, which represents a cooperation rate of 49 percent. Respondents answered questions on the following topics: (1)…

The job satisfaction and organizational commitment of rehabilitation counselors working in the public rehabilitation agency serving blind persons in Virginia are the focus of this study. Participants were 13 rehabilitation counselor survey respondents whose agencies agreed to take part in the study. A total of 19 surveys were mailed. Job…

An overview is provided of the issues involved in the state-mandated exchange of data about transfer students between two-year and four-year colleges in Virginia. Background is presented on state legislators' concerns with the measurement of student achievement; guidelines developed by the state assembly regarding data exchanges and student…

This study examined the nature of and types of school involvement of parents of children with disabilities from rural school districts in Virginia. Parents (N=52) of elementary and middle school children from three different rural school districts completed a questionnaire containing a Likert type scale and open-ended questions. The data were…

This study was commissioned by the Commonwealth of Virginia to assess the status of technology availability and usage in public schools in the Commonwealth. The study used the Milken Exchange's "Seven Dimensions for Gauging Progress with Learning Technology" as a framework. The first dimension focuses on new opportunities and benefits…