This evaluation study provides descriptive information about the implementation and outcomes of the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) program in West Virginia, from September 2013 through May 2014. The report draws on information from online surveys of directors of 27 CCLC programs and from school teachers for 2,117 of the 11,432…

The Tuition Opportunity Program for Students (subsequently renamed the Taylor Opportunity Program for Students, or TOPS) was created via ACT 1375 during the 1997 Regular Legislative Session. The first college freshman class to receive TOPS awards entered postsecondary education in the fall of 1998. ACT 1202 of the 2001 Regular Legislative Session…

This article is about a year-long teaching and research project conducted with 696 4th graders (mostly 10-year olds) and their 36 teachers in Wyoming/USA. The researchers employed an action research approach. They planned and taught a two-day, Wyoming-themed, interdisciplinary unit, "We Are Wyoming", which integrated Social Studies,…

This exploratory study investigated the use of concepts related to families, parents, and the home in 51 state-level early learning and development standards documents. Guidelines from six national family involvement, engagement, and school-partnership models were used to create the Family Involvement Models Analysis Chart (FIMAC), which served as…

A companion piece to "High Stakes for High Achievers: State Accountability in the Age of ESSA," this report appraises states' current (or planned) accountability systems as they affect high-achieving students in high school. They were examined and rated based on whether they incorporate under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) the…

The "Annual Disability Statistics Compendium" is a publication of statistics about people with disabilities and about the government programs which serve them. The "Compendium" is designed to serve as a summary of government statistics. The 2016 "Annual Disability Statistics Compendium" was substantially revised and…

The primary purpose of the 2016-2017 North Carolina (NC) Pre-Kindergarten (NC Pre-K) Evaluation study was to examine variability in enrollment practices within the statewide Pre-K Program. Four major categories of enrollment practices were examined: recruitment, application, placement, and waitlist. The study involved all 91 local NC Pre-K Program…

The author reflects on challenges faced by teacher educators when Kentucky's Educational Professional Standards Board mandated a new Co-Teaching model for all of the state's student teachers in 2013. This article analyzes the overwhelmingly positive responses of cooperating teachers and the experiences of teacher candidates (student teachers) with…

California's community colleges continue to play a crucial role in the state's economy by providing students with the skills and knowledge to succeed and by advancing the economic growth and global competitiveness of California and its regional economies through the Economic and Workforce Development Program (EWD). Under the Doing What Matters for…

Minnesota Reading Corps is the largest AmeriCorps State program in the country. Its mission is to help every Minnesota child become a proficient reader by the end of third grade. To meet this goal, the Minnesota Reading Corps and its host organization, ServeMinnesota Action Network, engages a diverse group of AmeriCorps members to provide…

The purpose of the 2012-2013 North Carolina Pre-Kindergarten (NC Pre-K) Evaluation study was to examine the quality of the program and the outcomes for children, along with comparisons to previous years. The primary research questions addressed by this evaluation included: (1) What were the key characteristics of the local NC Pre-K programs?; (2)…

This paper analyzes the lasting impacts of a project aimed at teaching children how to read and write at age 6. Using a Difference-in-Differences methodology, the results show that it is not enough to get children literate at age 6 to secure lasting effects; the instruction process is also an important factor: Only pupils exposed to the Phonics…

Community colleges across the country are plagued with tight budgets--caused in part by state disinvestment and chronic federal underfunding. For rural community colleges, these challenges are even more acute, as their needs are greater and the costs of providing services higher. The COVID-19 pandemic has only deepened the prosperity gap between…

The Randolph-Sheppard Business Enterprise Program provides employment for more than 2,300 entrepreneurs who are legally blind across the United States. Moreover, these entrepreneurs employ an additional 14,000 people, of whom almost 2,000 are visually impaired or have other disabilities (Rehabilitation Services Administration [RSA], 2010). With…

The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act required states to adopt accountability systems measuring student proficiency on state-administered exams. The federal legislation contained several strict requirements for NCLB implementation, such as escalating student proficiency targets that reach 100% proficiency by 2014. But it also gave states…