In response to rising college tuition and student debt over the past three decades, some institutions, localities, and states have implemented a range of tuition-free promise programs to promote college access and success. Programs vary widely in their design features, including eligibility stipulations and award structure. I explore the growing…

Common elements of definitions of competency-based vocational education (CBVE) are: (1) CBVE is an instructional process; (2) students must develop competencies; (3) competency includes skill, knowledge, and attitudes; and (4) the outcome is successful job performance. Advantages of CBVE include: (1) students' awareness of what is expected of them…

This Education Policy Brief examines the research regarding the efforts occurring in the United States to consolidate school corporations or form cooperative agreements for shared services. The brief also examines those policy levers which are contributing to the elevated discussion concerning consolidation and shared services in Indiana. Based…

In this policy brief, an introductory review of early childhood education from a national perspective is followed by brief sketches of the north-central region's action and agendas. The states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin are covered. Concluding commentary identifies three program areas that should be better…

This report discusses the outcomes of a study that examined the use of accommodations in state assessment by students with disabilities and explored several related factors. A survey of states indicated 12 states (Florida, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Nevada, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, and West…

The Project on State-Level Child Outcomes was initiated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to examine the effects on children of waiver policies related to state welfare reform efforts prior to the passage of federal welfare reform legislation. This report details the project's examination of child well-being in the context of…

Policy briefs are reports on the status of current issues in education from a national perspective; descriptions of actions and agendas in the North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (NCREL) region; and commentaries by experts from their particular point of view; and resources for further information. The focus of this report is technology…

Recognizing the demand for a knowledge base to use to enhance the redesigning of the American educational system, this study adds to that base by identifying factors that are likely to lead to successful redesign. Two public elementary schools undergoing restructuring as part of the Indiana 2000 initiative were selected. One served over 180…

These matrices summarize the content of the certification/chartering requirements established by nine first-round and three second-round implementation states to deliver services in One-Stop Career Centers. Seven areas or dimensions of design/operations are compared. The narrative accompanying the matrices is divided into two sections--a matrix…