This paper examines ways in which the state of Florida addressed and resolved pressures to respond to continuous demands for reform by using new and different reform paths. Florida had committed itself in 1991 to a standards-based reform strategy. This commitment was analyzed during the 1996 election year. For the study, a content analysis of all…

To help stakeholders stay abreast of educational legislation, information which directly affects pre-K through 12 education is presented. The information is in the form of raw data and addresses the following topics: accountability, accreditation, administration, alternative education, assessment/testing, at-risk youth, attendance, bilingual…

The groundwork for rethinking the notion of education in rehabilitation has been laid by the correctional system's failure to create a rehabilitation mentality in prison inmates and to inform inmates of their right to file for expungement. State legislatures may need to amend their expunction statute to serve those former convicted felons who are…

This report contains the results of a nationwide survey of state regulatory agencies and is intended to update family day care licensing information gathered in 1990. In May 1991, the central regulatory agency in each of 50 states and the District of Columbia was asked to verify information gathered in the 1990 survey and answer further questions…

Iowa law requires direct reporting by mandatory reporters in all schools to the Department of Human Services. State law also requires all schools to adopt a uniform procedure for investigating allegations of abuse of students by school employees. The Department of Education and the Department of Human Services have established administrative rules…

Alaska's Public School Foundation Program, based on an instructional unit funding formula, enables the state to meet fiscal equalization criteria outlined in the federal PL 81-874 law (the disparity test). Alaska must meet the guidelines to utilize approximately $44 million in PL 81-874 funds within the state foundation plan as general revenues.…

To date, only two states (Minnesota and California) have passed charter-school legislation. This report presents details from these two states regarding charter-school formation, including roles played by teachers and organizers, by local school boards as sponsors, and by county or state officials in providing an appeals process and technical…

The number of parents who have chosen to educate their children at home has increased dramatically in recent years. Moreover, although less than one percent of school-aged children in the United States are schooled at home, a combination of judicial challenges and legislative activism have allowed advocates of home schooling to make major…

This policy brief presents updated information on charter schools, particularly on developments in the North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (NCREL) region. Contents include a letter from Toivola-Meadowlands Charter School students and interviews with two parents from the Toivola-Meadowlands, Minnesota, Charter Schools. The parents report…

On December 24, 1994, the Michigan State Legislature passed a comprehensive school finance reform package for the K-12 education system. This document analyzes the school finance reform package and presents a comprehensive review of the issues affected by the proposed reforms. The first section reviews the overall financial components of the…

Certain factors have been identified as crucial for the success of principals of large high schools (Woolley 1977; Prine 1983). Findings from a study to determine if these previously identified factors have withstood the impact of the education reform movement of the 1980s are presented in this paper. Specifically, the study sought to determine…

Designed to make state documents more easily accessible and more widely available to the general public, these guidelines focus on the responsibilities that should be assumed at the state level by the library community of each state. The first guideline, Minimum State Servicing, is the most general. The Checklist, Inputting into Data Bases, and…

This study examines retention rates in Dade County (Florida) schools, using aggregate statistical data for the school years 1982-83 through 1988-89 to describe existing patterns and changes over time. An earlier study established commonalities of pattern across grades, over great disparities of circumstances, and across time. The following…

This study evaluates the effects of the Minnesota education expense tax deduction law. The study design was limited, since the Minnesota Department of Revenue declined to participate in the survey. Within these limitations the study looked at (1) the number of tax returns claiming education deductions, (2) the distribution of gross income for…

This publication describes Wisconsin state level library services and their funding and presents recommendations related to state level resource providers, as required by Wisconsin Statutes, Chapter 347, Laws of 1979. Types of and the structure for providing statewide library services and resources are outlined, followed by a description of…