This study investigates the Pedagogical Leadership Training Project aimed at enhancing leadership in rural Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres in South Africa. It addresses the prevalent economic-focused leadership that neglects pedagogical issues, hindering access to government funding and regulatory compliance. The research explores the…

The Drug-Free Communities (DFC) Support Program aims to reduce youth substance use by fostering multi-sector collaboration and implementing locally tailored strategies within the community. This study is among the first to evaluate the program's impact on youth development outcomes in the United States. Using the Callaway and Sant'Anna (2021)…

Creative thinking is a key focus in twenty-first century higher education, yet engineering students are often seen as lacking creativity due to traditional training approaches. To address this issue, this study examines the effectiveness of project-based learning (PBL) integrated with Scamper--a creative thinking tool--and Trello--a project…

Background: ADHD is associated with oxidative stress (OS), possibly stemming from deficiencies in essential nutrients. Previous randomized controlled trials (RCTs), including Micronutrients for ADHD in Youth (MADDY), demonstrated improved symptoms in response to treatment with multinutrients compared to placebo. It remains unknown whether…

This paper provides the first experimental evidence on the long-term effects of work-study programs, leveraging a randomized lottery design from a national program in Uruguay. Participation leads to a persistent 11 percent increase in formal labor earnings, observable seven years after the program. Effects are stronger for youth who participate…

Iowa State University (ISU) is a public, four-year university in Eastern Iowa. About one-third of full-time faculty at ISU are in VITAL roles, positions they refer to as term faculty. Term faculty have promotion line opportunities that mirror tenure-line faculty; across five specialized roles (teaching, practice, clinical, research, and adjunct),…

As digital skills become progressively more essential for workforce participation, addressing foundational digital literacy gaps among disadvantaged workers has become an increasingly pressing issue for achieving economic growth for all. The authors summarize results from a pilot study of a course on foundational computer skills and digital…

Children with autism from underserved communities face complex system-, provider-, and family-level barriers to accessing timely diagnosis and early intervention. The current study evaluated the preliminary effects and feasibility of a new program (ECHO Autism LINKS) that integrated pediatric primary care provider (PCP) training with family…

School districts are experiencing critical staff shortages with the most severe shortages concentrated in the highest-needs schools. The authors' Educator Preparation Program at Governors State University implemented a mock job fair pilot for their candidates around three complementary goals: (a) to improve our candidates' interview confidence,…

In 2018, the U.S. Federal government published a STEM education strategy report outlining a vision with three goals (building a strong foundation for STEM literacy, increasing diversity, equity and inclusion in STEM, preparing the STEM workers for the future) for providing Americans access to high-quality STEM education and acquisition of future…

The traditional teacher preparation model and traditional assessments are outdated, necessitating flexible and accelerated pathways to address declining enrollment and educator shortages. Apprenticeships and competency-based education offer viable alternatives, emphasizing skill attainment over traditional timelines. Effective alternative…

This naturalistic study evaluated the treatment effectiveness of a U.S. New England region adolescent partial hospital program (PHP) for individuals referred from higher versus lower levels of care (LOC). Participants were adolescents ages 12 to 18 admitted to the in-person (n = 161) and virtual (n = 78) day programming. Chart review determined…

As the number of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) increases, the need for well trained teachers who can implement behavior interventions also increases. The current study examines the available research to determine which methods of training are most effective in increasing teacher fidelity to implement behavior…

Research and literature validate a disconnect between STEM graduates' classroom-acquired knowledge and skills versus those needed to perform tasks in the workplace. Some contend that pedagogical and curricular developments focus on discipline-specific content rather than soft skills, willingness to learn, flexibility, critical thinking,…

We investigated the effectiveness of a 5-week wellness group curriculum for counselors-in-training (N = 60). A repeated measures multivariate analysis of variance was conducted to evaluate whether the curriculum positively affected perceived wellness among participants. The results showed statistically significant differences in scores, indicating…