"The Regulatory Sandbox in Education" (S.B. 191, 2022) allows a school to implement an innovative education program and apply to the State Board of Education for a temporary waiver of state board rule to support an innovative education program. Under this program, local agencies approve proposed plans which are then reported to the State…

The primary goal of this research is to examine New York State's humane education mandate, Section 809 of the Education Law; specifically, its history, barriers, and possible implementation solutions to achieve statewide elementary school compliance. It explores the educational system and its role in school compliance with the mandate. In…

In response to concerns about the additional costs and time-to-degree associated with traditional developmental education programs, several states and postsecondary systems have implemented corequisite reform where academically underprepared students take both a developmental education course and college-level course in the same subject area…

Social emotional learning (SEL) is a term that encompasses a set of essential life skills including self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making (Collaborative for Academic Social and Emotional Learning [CASEL], 2024, para. 1). Despite growing interest, many school districts struggle with…

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as reauthorized in 2015, includes a provision to help protect students from sexual abuse and misconduct. ESEA Section 8546 requires states to adopt laws or policies that prohibit K-12 employers from assisting or aiding and abetting school employees, contractors, or agents in obtaining a…

In 2015, Congress added a provision in the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA) to help protect students from sexual abuse and misconduct in schools. ESEA Section 85461 requires states to have in place laws or policies that prohibit schools, local school districts, or state education agencies (SEAs) from…

Two years after the State of Illinois enacted an extensive non-exclusionary discipline reform in schools, 322 key discipline gatekeepers in schools were surveyed about the extent and impact of its implementation. The results showed that a number of core provisions of the reform had not been fully implemented or addressed through professional…

Background: By 2014, all states implemented concussion laws that schools must translate into daily practice; yet, limited knowledge exists regarding implementation of these laws. We examined the extent to which concussion management policies and procedure (P&P) documents of New York State school districts comply with the State's Concussion…

Background: With the rise in childhood obesity, school policies related to nutrition and physical activity have been written and implemented. In this paper, we present a model to evaluate the degree to which state legislation for school health policies are implemented at the school level. Methods: Using Washington, DC's Healthy Schools Act (HSA)…

Many arguments support mandating American National Government for undergraduates. South Carolina is one of the few states with such a legal mandate, but the law is badly flawed. We briefly review the history of a failed 1994 effort by the SC Political Science Association to improve the law and encourage implementation. We examine the impact of an…

This study focuses on Public Act 103 of 2011, which made teacher evaluation, layoff policies and teacher placement prohibited subjects of bargaining, among other things. After surveying 200 Michigan school district collective bargaining agreements, this study finds that as many as 60 percent of districts could have collective bargaining agreements…

Minnesota Statutes 122A.40, Subdivision 8 and 122A.41, Subdivision 5, require that all districts evaluate teachers beginning in the 2014-2015 school year. In response to the statutes, the Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) convened a work group in early winter 2011 to consult with the MDE Commissioner to develop a state model for teacher…

Although a growing line of research has emerged on the legal history and policy effects of state legislation regarding the college access opportunities of undocumented students, less is written on the implementation stories of these laws and policies in the institutions most likely to enroll undocumented students--the community college. This…

To determine why North Carolina's limited guardianship law is not being utilized by developmentally disabled (DD) persons, interviews were conducted with 79 DD adults, 14 group home housemanagers, 8 clerks of court, 8 social workers, 13 mental retardation specialists, and 13 parents of DD persons. (Author)

Spurred by a state superior court deadline for developing a constitutional school capital finance system, Arizona Governor Jane Hull signed legislation (Students FIRST) that dramatically reformed school construction. This legislation created a School Facilities Board and established three funds for improving school conditions and meeting building…