Describes one-stop career centers funded with Department of Labor grants in several states. The centers offer help for finding jobs and developing careers, involve several agencies, offer options for getting services, and provide a system for evaluation. (JOW)

Profiles the first eight states, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, New jersey, New York, Oregon, Wisconsin, to receive federal school-to-work grants and looks at how they are doing. (JOW)

J. Schrag, as state special education administrator in Washington, answers questions about such topics as current trends in mental retardation, fiscal crises, potential impact of new federal policies, related services, the role of the state education agencies, and ways to solve high teacher attrition rates. (CL)

Unemployment insurance is a cooperative federal and state program that provides temporary, partial wage replacement to formerly employed people who lose their jobs through no fault of their own. This issue brief discusses the program and its importance as an approach to ameliorate the effects of welfare reform on struggling families. The brief…

This report examines possible steps the State of Illinois might take to expand the availability of Medicaid support for services to persons with developmental disabilties. Stressed throughout are the importance of: (1) evaluating whether any given application of Medicaid funding is consistent with the State's goals for persons with developmental…

Analysis of changes in education funding across all 50 states during the 1980s shows that education revenues per pupil are neither increasing nor decreasing overall, but are staying constant after adjusting for enrollment increases and inflation. Demands for education improvement exceed the level of fiscal resources needed to make improvements.…

Since fiscal year (FY) 1997, states have used funds from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) block grant to supplement other funds in efforts to provide more child care assistance. This report provides an overview of the rules governing the use of TANF funds for child care. The report also describes how states used TANF funds to…

Dr. Saul Cooperman, newly appointed Commissioner of Education in New Jersey, discusses his views on state aid cuts; the "Thorough and Efficient" Law, formally known as the Public School Education Act of 1975; paper work, urban education, good schools, and other issues facing New Jersey public education. (Author/LC)

The State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) in 1997 signaled a major increase in time, energy, creativity, and money devoted to enrolling eligible children in health insurance programs. Child advocates and others have focused on developing outreach and enrollment strategies to bring the benefits of these new SCHIP programs to children…

Maryland's decade of experience in providing programs for gifted and talented students indicates that response to the needs of such students has been strongest when federal, state, and local policy and financial commitments were complementary. The notion that federal financial support is not necessary and may even be counterproductive is…

This paper discusses the basic content of Titles I and II of Public Law 99-457: the Amendments to the Education of the Handicapped Act, and their implications for providing early intervention services to rural populations. "Title I: Services to Infants and Toddlers" discusses provisions of the law, its rationale, definitions of terms…

This report discusses the impact of child care and welfare reform legislation under consideration by the Senate Republican leadership in the United States 104th Congress, based in part on a national survey of how states are coping, or not coping, with current child care needs and how prepared they are to cope with new demands for child care…

An interview with Steve Barnett, the recently appointed assistant deputy minister, finance and administration, in the Ministry of Education for British Columbia, focuses on the involvement the Canadian federal government has in public education in Canada. Comments on specific aspects of the Goals 2000 Act and how they relate to Canadian…

States can use Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) and state maintenance of effort (MOE) funds to foster access to postsecondary education (PE) for low income parents. Access matters because success of welfare reform depends on helping welfare recipients work steadily and find better jobs; neither of the two most commonly tried…

A survey of state Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) policies toward postsecondary training or education (PSE) shows that at least 40 states allow more access to PSE than would be countable under the House-passed reauthorization bill (H.R.4737). If it were enacted, these states would likely have to change their policies to reduce…