The story of Senator Thomas Eagleton and the media's exploitation of his mental illness is investigated in terms of media power and future policy re: the media. (JC)

The U.S. is now training and importing new physicians at a rate that will increase the ratio of physicians-to-population by nearly 50 percent: over the next 25 years. Similar increases in the supply of other health manpower will also result from current enrollment levels. Since only marginal, if any, improvements in overall health care will…

The intended coordinative role of the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ), as defined under the National Environmental Policy Act, is compared and contrasted with its actual activities since its formation in 1969. The Council on Environmental Quality's success has been varied and is subject to dispute. (BT)

The goal of this primer is to help policymakers and other interested individuals answer three big questions: (1) What does the research say? (2) Is the research trustworthy? (3) How can the research be used to guide policy? Answering these questions will help policymakers: (1) make evidenced-based decisions about education policies; (2) gain a…

This report describes the technical aspects of the establishment of a "Fast Response Survey System" for the state of Washington. The system, supported by the Stuart Foundation and the newly created Center for Strengthening the Teaching Profession (CSTP), is being designed to offer timely and useful information to the state's policy community…

This report traces the history and accomplishments of the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education over the past 12 years, during 3 state administrations. In the early 1990s, as the Commonwealth was feeling the impact of recession, the perceived quality of the system was declining, as were enrollments and retention. State policymakers and leaders…

The fifth edition of this book presents the results of the social work profession's most systematic approach to policy development. Since its inception in 1955, the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) has incorporated policy statements into its governance process. NASW's Delegate Assembly meets at regular intervals to set broad…

Correlation and multiple regression analyses revealed the extent to which the report card grades of Quality Counts 2002, prepared by Education Week, were intercorrelated with and predicted by demographic factors among many states. The researchers used four grades from Quality Counts 2002 and five demographic factors. Few intercorrelations were…

This report from the 1995 Child Care Action Campaign national audioconference examines approaches to building support among child care providers, legislators, and parents for investments in good quality child care in light of welfare reform. The report summarizes recent findings that children in good quality child care had a more developed…

The charter-school movement is a diverse and confusing collection of values, motives, beliefs, and assumptions. To help ease the confusion surrounding charter schools, an outline of the general purposes of the charter-school movement and the values behind these purposes are presented in this booklet. The intent is to provide a structure for…

The purpose of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, IDEA, is to ensure that all children with disabilities have access to an appropriate public education. However, schools may be barring that access for many children with mental and emotional disorders by using inadequate assessment rules. Children who fail to qualify under the IDEA…

As states confront budget shortfalls, investment in mental health services faces the chopping block. Almost every state has instituted cost containment strategies in its Medicaid programs and state policymakers have begun to cut services for people with mental health treatment needs. The first part of this report presents research on state cuts to…

The U.S. Senate will soon consider the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the centerpiece of the federal government's involvement in public education. The Senate should consider at least three important improvements in the ESEA. The first is to make Title I of the ESEA, the provision for aid to disadvantaged…

Nearly 24 million youth, ages 10 through 17, were online regularly in 1999. Large numbers of young people, when on the Internet, are encountering sexual solicitations they do not want, sexual material they did not seek, and people who threaten and harass them. A national survey described in this paper and administered to 1,501 young people, ages…