The "Forum Guide to Data Governance" highlights how data governance programs benefit education agencies and provide timely and useful best practices, examples, and resources for agencies implementing or updating their data governance programs. This resource is intended to address the needs of federal, state, and local agencies related…

In response to local districts' needs for certified teachers with community roots who understand local schools and students, the authors developed an innovative alternative route for paraprofessionals based on a traditional bachelor's program. Their goals were to provide a rigorous, research-based program that allows paraprofessionals to get a…

Since the enactment of Public Law 94-142, school districts have struggled to hire and retain required special education personnel (i.e., special education teachers, school psychologists, and related service providers). Data show that shortages of these qualified personnel are even more magnified in rural school districts. Distance education can…

Skilled local special education administrators (LSEAs) are difficult to replace. Estimates vary, but about 10-15% of these positions turn over each year. To build necessary skills, individuals need broad opportunities to lead other adults, but high caseloads and funding constraints too often keep future leaders focused instead on direct services…

In this paper, we compare the bilingual/language education policies of Arizona and Washington to show that state-level language policy plays a critical role in shaping the appropriation of federal language policy [No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), Title III] and how different state-level language policies impact the district level of policy…

In 2009, the United States Department of Education conducted a competition for a second round of Striving Readers grants. Its dual purpose was to: (1) Raise middle and high school students' literacy levels in Title I-eligible schools with significant numbers of students reading below grade level; and (2) Build a strong, scientific research base…

FACTS ABOUT INSTRUCTIONAL IMPROVEMENTS MADE BY 191 WASHINGTON SCHOOL DISTRICTS IN THE YEARS 1958-1961 WERE PRESENTED. IN ADDITION TO THE IMPROVEMENTS MADE BY INDIVIDUAL TEACHERS, THESE DISTRICTS DEVELOPED 976 NEW INSTRUCTIONAL PROGRAMS. THESE DEVELOPMENTS INCLUDED ALL SUBJECT AREAS AND GRADES (K-14). THE FIRST PART OF THE REPORT SUMMARIZED THE…

The goal of Career and Technical Education (CTE) is to prepare all students for successful roles as workers, family members, citizens, and lifelong learners. To achieve this goal, this document identifies basic elements that are expected within all CTE programs. These elements are the basis for any instructional program to be approved for state…

An accountability system is proposed for the education system in Washington. Reform efforts in Washington have been designed to create a school-centered system in which state standards motivate teachers, parents, and principals to search for more effective ways to help students learn. Drawing on the experience of other states, recommendations are…

Chapter 2 of the Elementary and Secondary School Improvement Amendments directs that at least 80% of funds targeted under the law be delivered to school districts, while up to 20% may be reserved for statewide use. In 1989, the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction in Olympia (Washington) redirected this 20% to support a competitive…

This booklet presents a model for use by any size or type of school district in developing an affirmative action plan. The model is intended to give districts a clear idea of what affirmative action requires and what type of program must be implemented for affirmative action to be successful. Separate sections of the booklet discuss numerical…

Guidelines are presented to ensure the equality of athletic programs for males and females in the Washington state schools. This guide is designed as a foundation for the development of local school and district athletic programs. The essential components for athletic program equality in Washington are: (1) athletic equity plan development; (2)…

This small-school vocational education research project, conducted during the 1981-82 school year in Washington State, attempted to develop alternative vocational program delivery and funding strategies for small high school districts. A statewide review committee and two principal investigators conducted national and statewide research to…

This report outlines the roles and responsibilities, pertaining to the improvement amd coordination of statewide teacher inservice, of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI) in the state of Washington. After a field-based research study was conducted, a system was devised by which the SPI can improve coordination of staff development…

Described in this speech are five growing FLES programs in the State of Washington that reflect in their distinctive structural and content patterns the particular philosophy of the different school districts in which each has developed. In each description mention is made of (1) enrollment and district participation figures, (2) grades included…