"Principles and Practices" (P&P), a real estate pre-licensing class, is one of the most popular courses in adult education, because it can literally be the key to the dual American dreams: striking it rich and owning a home. One of the things that makes the P&P class unique is that it is taught in so many different venues. The…

After months of deliberations and promises of dramatic change for Los Angeles' embattled schools, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa the week of April 17, 2006 called for California lawmakers to put his office in charge of running the day-to-day operations of the nation's second largest school district. In his first State of the City address, Mr.…

This article explores the ways in which policy-makers in Arizona, Michigan and Georgia understood the charter concept when adopting charter legislation. Drawing on literature on policy formation, the paper traces both the creation of the charter law in each state, and the underlying rationales that led policy-makers to support the legislation. The…

When it comes to structure, governance, mission, or size, community colleges differ from state to state. One common element in many states, however, is state funding. Whether a state prepares its budget annually or biennially, the human behavior governing the budget process remains the same. Funds are finite. Everyone wants more than can be…

The Maryland legislature's success in blocking a state takeover of low-performing schools in Baltimore under the No Child Left Behind Act raises the prospect of political resistance in other states that might attempt such intervention. While no other state has yet invoked the federal law to take control of a school, the experience in Maryland…

Firearms play an important role in lethal domestic violence incidents. The authors review state laws regarding two policies to separate batterers from firearms: laws authorizing police to remove firearms when responding to a domestic violence complaint ("police gun removal laws") and laws authorizing courts to order guns removed from batterers…

This article reports on the controversy over the "academic bill of rights" that is being pushed by conservative activist David Horowitz of the Center for the Study of Popular Culture. A committee in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed a resolution in July that reflects the concerns of this "bill," which has been…

The No Child Left Behind Act allows states to vary (a) the trajectories they select to move from the baseline percent proficient or above in 2002 to the 100% proficient goal in 2014, (b) the minimum number of students required for reporting of disaggregated subgroup results, and (c) whether or not they will use confidence intervals when…

Purpose: Advance directive (AD) documents are based on state-specific statutes and vary in terms of content. These differences can create confusion and inconsistencies resulting in a possible failure to honor the health care wishes of people who execute health care documents for one state and receive health care in another state. The purpose of…

In June 1869, a coalition of 12 individuals and two businesses presented the Massachusetts state legislature with a carefully crafted petition. This document called for lawmakers to take action in requesting that the State Board of Education develop a plan to initiate drawing instruction in Massachusetts public schools, or to establish educational…

This article examines the increasing number of college presidents leaving their posts in Iowa for higher-paying positions at other major research universities. With the recent departure of yet another popular president at the University of Iowa, members of the state's Board of Regents, the news media, and even faculty members are arguing that the…

Nearly every legislative session in the last decade has changed state law in a way that requires school board members and superintendents to be more highly sensitized to conflict of interest issues, regardless of the size of their district. Prior state law simply forbade most opportunities for financial conflicts of interest, especially those…

The Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) follows education budgets and legislation during regular and special legislative sessions. Current actions are found in Legislative Reports that are released on a timely basis during the months that SREB state legislatures are in session, usually from January through July. These reports follow education…

Both supporters and critics of Texas' Top 10 Percent law have been surprised at its popularity, but some UT officials and legislators would like to see the program scaled back. As a Texas state legislator, Jim McReynolds, D-Lufkin, knows a thing or two about influencing the voting positions of his colleagues. This past spring, when Texas House…

This article provides an overview of the charter school movement in the United States and a synthesis of the findings of the studies that have been conducted for nearly a decade by the University of Maryland in collaboration with the National Association of State Directors of Special Education (NASDSE). The research documents the evolution of…