Interrelations between the states and higher education are examined, and a generally optimistic outlook is presented. Two major sections are given, one commentary, the other descriptive. The commentary has these major themes: (1) American higher education, with federal, state, and private funding, has been comparatively effective; (2) some surplus…

Annual reports from 45 states, the District of Columbia, and three Canadian provinces are presented. They focus on problems, activities, achievements, and other areas of interest to the postsecondary education community. Each state commission on higher education reviews such topics as pertinent legislative actions, priorities, enrollment,…

State-sponsored programs that seek to attract college students to teaching by paying off a portion of their student loans for each year they teach are reviewed and discussed. (MSE)

A restructuring of federal, state, and local relations is ceding considerably more control of education to the states. State mandates are now far more common than technical assistance and focus increasingly on the core of instructional policy, leading to a standardizing effect as local discretion declines. (DCS)

The Texas Library Connection (TLC) is a state-funded project that began in 1995. TLC is intended to provide a statewide electronic network for school libraries that provides a union database of school library holdings, access to commercial full-text databases, access to MARC cataloging records, and access to interlibrary loan functions. This paper…

Tennessee data were analyzed for four years before and five years after the funding formula for special education was changed from a "flat" rate to a "weighted" formula. The weighted formula was associated with a statistically significant decrease in less restrictive placements and a reliable increase in more restrictive…

Parent involvement in New Mexico, and around the nation, is an essential element in the success of students and their schools. This simple point anchors the federal law known as the "No Child Left Behind Act of 2001" ("NCLB"). NCLB establishes state, district and school requirements designed to promote more effective parent…

Recent state efforts reflect a growing commitment to building state child care systems, but increasing child care capacity while simultaneously designing and expanding good quality, new child care systems remains a challenge. On November 17, 1997, the Child Care Action Campaign (CCAC) conducted an audioconference that focused on how Wisconsin,…

Many communities have expressed their concern about inadequacies in child care by setting up a Community Coordinated Child Care (4-C) council that brings together all those involved with services to children and families. (Author/RY)

This manual is intended to help people working in local libraries collect and report statistics about what they do and complete the Texas State Library annual report form. Texas uses the annual reports to determine whether local libraries are eligible for membership in the Texas library system. Definitions and explanations are given for…

A 1991 study conducted by the Ohio Legislative Office of Education Oversight examined the Career Education program funded through the Ohio Department of Education. During the 2 years studied, the Career Education program was funded for $11.5 million in 60 local programs serving 365 school districts in grades K-12. (Career education is not a course…

This article reviews the development of state funding formulas or guidelines for public higher education. Originally viewed as a means to distribute public funds in a rational and equitable manner, they now are complicated methodologies. Funding formulas are all-inclusive or itemized; most states use the itemized approach. There are three…

This report summarizes Colorado student aid program expenditures for 1994-95. It briefly describes the following program types: need-based grants, merit-based grants, Colorado work-study, diversity grants, required federal matches, Colorado nursing scholarships, and categorical programs. Highlights of the report reveal the following: state…

This report provides an overview of the importance of State Chapter 1 funds to schools in the most impoverished neighborhoods of Chicago (Illinois), schools that serve the city's most disadvantaged children. It documents the central role of programs in Chicago schools paid for with these funds, underscoring the importance of finding ways to…

The Iowa Educational Excellence Act and its amendments provide for four types of Phase III programs: performance-based pay, supplemental pay, a combination of both, or comprehensive school transformation. In 1993, the Des Moines Phase III program, which originated as a combination of performance-based pay and supplemental pay, changed to a…