In 1991, the New American Schools (NAS) Development Corporation was founded by a group of business and foundation leaders interested in investing in innovative designs for school transformation. This book describes the first 3 years of development and evaluation of 9 NAS whole-school restructuring designs. The designs were very diverse, as were…

California Early Literacy Learning (CELL) and Extended Literacy Learning (ExLL) are professional development programs designed to help elementary teachers strengthen their teaching of reading and writing. Research-based teaching methodologies are organized into a framework for classroom instruction. CELL training (pre-K-Grade 3) emphasizes that…

This report describes the design of the Literacy in Libraries Across America (LILAA) persistence study, the strategies that participating libraries are using to increase student persistence, and emerging implementation issues. It describes existing patterns in student persistence, identifies factors that support or inhibit persistence, and begins…

The Washington state School-to-Work (STW) All Students/Special Populations Work Group developed a set of criteria to ensure equity in access, outreach, participation, and treatment for all students in the STW system. "All students and special populations" encompasses both male and female students; disadvantaged students with diverse…

This is a 2001 report on the enrollment and progress for basic skills students in Washington State's community and technical colleges. Report highlights include: (1) 15% of all state-support instruction is in basic skills; (2) 53% of basic skills instruction is in English second language (ESL) programs; and (3) adult basic education (ABE) and…

This is a report on the 2001 after-college earnings of students from Washington State's community and technical colleges. The state board created a wage-based category system for all 500 vocational/job-preparatory programs offered by the 34 state two-year colleges. The programs were divided into high- ($12 or more per hour), middle- ($10.50-$12…

This professional development packet consists of two sessions, each requiring 6 hours. Session one is designed to teach participants to do the following: identify at least three unique characteristics of workplace English as a Second Language (ESL); describe the steps involved in developing a workplace ESL program; identify the basic steps of…

This research brief discusses how to integrate service learning into institutional culture, climate, and expectations so that it can be sustained. According to studies in the 1990s, the use of service learning in community colleges increased almost 50% in just a few years. While the number of these programs has grown significantly, not all are…

This report profiles Ohio projects developed under Section 353 of the Adult Education Act (P.L. 100-297) during the 1998-99 year. The projects are part of an initiative taken by the Ohio Department of Education, Division of Career-Technical and Adult Education, to develop and implement a structure and system that links professional development to…

In 1998, the Institution-Wide Reform project at the University of Hartford (Connecticut) was evaluated. The main focus of the project was the improvement of teaching and learning in the science, mathematics, engineering, and technology (SMET) disciplines for freshmen. Documentation from various sources indicated that the program accomplished its…

This paper examines the role of innovation in library operations, with an aim to incorporate innovative procedures that achieve convenience in practice, and efficiency and effectiveness in a simultaneous economic reduction. The methodology outlined in this paper is that of Best Practices. The objective of this method is to examine an…

The report includes a review of the State Board of Education's benchmarks during the last 30 years and describes the policy development of seven institutional effectiveness measures. Progress reports from each of the major areas served by Alabama's community, junior and technical colleges are covered, including: occupational, vocational and career…

The Pew Partnership works with local and national partners to design and implement new solutions to social problems, analyze local leadership for action, and research and disseminate cutting edge strategies for urban improvement. Interviews were conducted with 65 people in 9 communities participating in the Pew Partnership to examine their ways of…

To dispel concerns that career education does not belong in middle school, it may help to reinterpret a career more broadly as life, not just work. Middle school students should view career paths as a broad range of options available to them. In addition, early career education may help to dispel sex-role stereotypes and self-limiting practices of…

This report presents the conclusions and recommendations of the Indian Valley campus (California) community task force to the Marin Community College District trustees. The trustees appointed the Indian Valley campus task force in 2000 to study options for the educational vitality, fiscal sustainability, and community benefit of the campus. This…