While fiscal year 2012-2013 was a year of transition for the Office of Early Learning (OEL), fiscal year 2013-2014 proved to be a year when new leadership, organizational structure, direction and vision coalesced, producing results that demonstrated the office was moving in the right direction. The first day of the fiscal year--July 1, 2013--was…

School leaders are critical in the lives of students and to the development of their teachers. Unfortunately, in too many instances, principals are effective in spite of--rather than because of--district conditions. To truly improve student achievement for all students across the country, well-prepared principals need the tools, support, and…

Head Start is a federal program that has provided comprehensive early childhood development services to low-income children and their families since 1965. The comprehensive nature of the program includes educational, health, nutritional, and social services. These services are intended to prepare children to enter kindergarten and to improve the…

The purpose of this case study is to understand and explain the characteristics of a small business incubator located on the campus of a community college. Business incubation and entrepreneurship programs are increasing in number on community college campuses across the country (Montoya, 2009). As community colleges have traditionally played a…

This study estimates the extent that state financial support for higher education raises college attainment. Despite its manifest importance for policy, this is the first study to estimate this effect directly. Many studies have estimated the effect of college price on attendance, but state support for higher education and college price do not…

"Benchmarking 2009: Trends in Education Philanthropy" is Grantmakers for Education's (GFE) second annual study of grantmaking trends and priorities among members. As a national network dedicated to improving education outcomes through philanthropy, GFE members are mindful of their role in fostering greater knowledge in the field. They believe it's…

As representatives of the public's interests in public charter schools, authorizers lie at the foundation of a quality charter school sector. The core functions of authorizing--charter school approval, oversight and evaluation--are essential in promoting and upholding charter school quality. To carry out these functions professionally and…

The "Assistive Technology Act of 1998," as amended by Public Law 108-364 ("AT Act of 1998," as amended) requires that the secretary of education submit to Congress a report on the activities funded under that act. Specifically, the secretary of education is required to annually provide to Congress: (1) a compilation and summary…

Political, market and historical forces within Australia have produced a supportive environment for creating a new marketplace for schools, including those that are affiliated with a range of different faiths. Indeed, this sector has now become a significant feature of the Australian educational landscape. This article argues that the increasing…

This article begins with a critical consideration of five trends in social and educational research policy and environment in the UK and internationally: (1) the intensification of public criticisms of education research since the mid- and late-1990s; (2) the increasing emphasis on user involvement and focus on use; (3) the ever tighter…

Planned giving, which should not be considered just the domain of the super-wealthy, can be a solution for donors who are looking for secure income during their lifetimes--as well as tax benefits for themselves and their heirs. Even in difficult times, donors are most likely to consider a planned gift. Why? Quite simply, planned gifts are…

Since 2006, it has been clear that the system of capped variable fees hasn't worked, either in practice or in principle. The system fails when it comes to delivering admission by ability, rather than the ability to pay. It fails in the allocation of bursaries, and it fails because, while there is guaranteed debt, there is no guarantee of financial…

After Dr. Larry Earvin became Huston-Tillotson University president, he crafted an annual black-tie gala to raise scholarship funds. Despite the country's economic doldrums, Earvin's event this year netted proceeds pushing the cumulative total since 2004 to more than $1 million. When Beverly Hogan became Tougaloo College president, she urged…

To study changes in nonresident father contact since the 1970s, we pooled data from 4 national surveys: the National Survey of Children (1976), the National Survey of Families and Households (1987 - 1988), the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (1996), and the National Survey of America's Families (2002). On the basis of mothers' reports,…

The nation's biggest athletics departments are quietly trying to raise hundreds of millions of dollars for separate sports endowments, heating up the competition for donors and raising questions about institutional priorities during the economic crunch. At least eight programs hope to bring in more than $100-million each to defray the rising costs…