In the late 1980s, in response to a number of problems including consistently low academic performance by students and graduates lacking the skills needed by employers, Swansea High School in Swansea, South Carolina, launched a major reform effort designed to transform Swansea into a high-performance high school. During the multi-year reform…

The role of adult education in sustaining economic growth and expanding opportunity in Massachusetts was explored. The analysis focused on the new basic skills needed for a new economy, groups lacking the new basic skills, the demand for adult basic education (ABE), funding for ABE, building basic skills through adult education, ABE's costs and…

This document profiles nine youth programs, illustrating concepts, strategies, and lessons available to communities as they start to form an integrated network of essential services designed to prepare out-of-school youth for success in the job market of the 21st century. "Introduction" (Marion Pines) lists considerations when planning a…

A study examined the effectiveness of existing nursing education programs to prepare individuals in the United Kingdom for employment as community specialist practitioners in the context of public health. The study was designed in three strands as follows: (1) a questionnaire-based source of 52 directors and leaders from community specialist…

The National Job Corps Study was conducted in 1994-1996 to provide a thorough and rigorous assessment of the impacts of the Job Corps on key participant outcomes. To ensure that the study was well implemented, a study team from Mathematica Policy Research, Inc., (MPR) investigated outcome and admission (OA) procedures in each Job Corps region and…

Dialogue between the leaders of academic clinical organisations in different countries has revealed that the core elements of the partnership between universities and health care systems are remarkably consistent across national boundaries. There is now an impetus to move beyond analysis of common challenges and towards strategies for success that…

The extent and quality of school-to-work (STW) programs in the state of Washington were evaluated through a survey of all school districts receiving state STW funds and case studies of programs in four school districts (Bethel, Methow, Sumner, and Wapato), one consortium (Columbia River School-to-Work Consortium in Clark County), and two…

Many of the people who live in Knott County today are direct descendants of the early settlers of the region. Today the people of Knott County share an identity that is grounded in the place they and their ancestors called home. Perhaps the public endeavor in which the influence of place is most evident is education. In Knott County education has…

The goal of this guide is to provide information, support and practical tools that may help educators design, implement, and evaluate their school's standards-based education program. In order to work, a comprehensive, standards-based educational program must, by definition, be the organizing structure upon which the school program operates.…

Washington's apprenticeship program was compared to other programs providing preparation for employment. The following were among the items considered in the comparative analysis: gains in job-specific skill competencies; relationship of training to postprogram employment; participant satisfaction; employer satisfaction; employment opportunities;…

Since mid-1999, a bold initiative has been underway in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, to improve the well-being of the youngest members of the greater Cleveland community. A community-wide initiative targeting children from birth through age five and their families was launched in July 1999, and in the following 5 years demonstrated substantial success in…

In 1987, Walhalla High School in Walhalla, South Carolina, undertook a major restructuring effort to raise the school's standards and keep pace with the expectations of local high-tech businesses and industry. School and district leaders established an affiliation with the Southern Regional Education Board's High Schools That Work initiative,…

This document provides a framework for academic and career/technical teachers who want to raise students' achievement through real-life projects reflecting the rigorous academic and technical standards needed for further learning in the workplace and postsecondary education. The document begins with definitions of the six A's of project-based…

Surging demand for workers, growing income inequality, and passage of welfare reforms have made work force development one of the United States' key national concerns. Public/Private Ventures has been working with various states to design work force development strategies that seek to address the concerns of many work force development specialists…

Since mid-1999, a bold initiative has been underway in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, to improve the well-being of the youngest members of the greater Cleveland community. A community-wide initiative targeting children from birth through age five and their families was launched in July 1999, and in the following 5 years demonstrated substantial success…