Examines post-retirement benefit increases in 76 large state pension plans and the impact of such increases on the purchasing power and adequacy of pension benefits. Although nearly all plans increased benefits for retirees, increases were much less than needed to maintain the purchasing power of pension benefits. (Author/JAC)

A national census of all state-licensed residential facilities for mentally retarded persons is summarized. Information on characteristics of facilities is presented along with demographic/functional characteristics of residents. The census verified the existence of an extensive variety of residential living alternatives available to mentally…

Reviews the history of the Crippled Children's Service (CCS) program and reports results of a survey of state CCS programs conducted in 1981. Documents extensive variability among state programs in number of children served, conditions covered, services provided, and other indices. Emphasizes the considerable influence of historical and leadership…

Discusses the inadequacies of the California High School Proficiency Examination and examines how the test has usurped every school board's responsibility to define and implement a meaningful education. (Author/IRT)

The A-95 review is a procedure for coordinating federally assisted programs and projects with each other and with state, regional, and local plans and programs. This article describes the Project Notification Review System that New York state has implemented in order to comply with the federal A-95 requirements. (Author/IRT)

The Maternal and Child Health Bureau launched the State Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems (SECCS) Initiative to promote the healthy development and school readiness of young children. This brief is a planning tool designed to assist states in conducting strategic planning throughout the initiative. It is organized into seven steps as…

Two methods to establish a common scale across grades within a content area using a common item design (separate and concurrent) have previously been studied under simulated conditions. Separate estimation is accomplished through separate calibration and grade-by-grade chained linking. Concurrent calibration established the vertical scale in a…

The No Child Left Behind Act required states and districts to begin offering supplemental educational services in the 2002-03 school year to students from low-income families attending Title I schools that had been identified for improvement for two years or more. This study examined the first year of implementation of supplemental services…

Among the provisions of Maryland Senate Bill 682 was that mission statements would be developed by the presidents of public institutions of higher education in Maryland, submitted, and then reviewed by the Higher Education Commission no later than June 30, 1999 as required by the law in effect before July 1, 1999. Mission statements were to be…

The Massachusetts Board of Education is required to establish standards for prekindergarten programs serving 3- and 4-year-olds in whole- or half-day programs. This document presents the standards to be used by programs receiving Chapter 188 Early Childhood funds. The program standards are intended to guide ongoing development, evaluation, and…

The inclusion of students with disabilities in state and district assessments rests on a fundamental belief: all children can learn. This belief centers on all children who receive educational services, even those whose teachers and therapists work with them at home or in the hospital. The purpose of this chapter is to clarify the rationale for…

The Family to Family initiative has encouraged states to reconceptualize, redesign, and reconstruct their foster care systems. By 1996, the initiative was being implemented in five states, five Georgia counties, and Los Angeles County, California. This paper describes an approach for nontraditional partnerships that work to rebuild the foster care…

In 1998, the State of Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services assumed responsibility for the Milwaukee County child welfare system. The Wisconsin Council on Children and Families has undertaken a multi-year, qualitative research project to monitor the state takeover. The three questions that this project seeks to answer are: (1) What…

Dramatic shifts from cash assistance to work, embodied in the 1996 replacement of Aid to Families with Dependent Children with Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), highlight the need to understand how current cash assistance recipients participate in required work-related activities and obstacles faced in getting and keeping jobs. The…

An English educator comments on general aspects of American education and specific efforts to educate gifted students. (MC)