The purpose of this volume is to provide a current view of the evolving professional development movement in community colleges. Chapter authors provide descriptions of how their institutions have addressed issues through professional development, created institutional change, developed new delivery systems, reached beyond development programs…

Smart Start is an early childhood initiative in North Carolina designed to build a statewide system of coordinated services for children from birth through age 5 and their families. At the heart of the program are 82 public-private nonprofit partnerships representing North Carolina's 100 counties, each sharing the mission of promoting school…

This report calls for the phased closure of separate, special schools in the United Kingdom as a main task in developing inclusive education. It argues that the central problem in the development of inclusive education in the United Kingdom is the continuing philosophical, financial and legislative support of segregated schooling. The report…

During the 1999-2000 program year, the Division of Economic and Workforce Development attempted to further the North Carolina Community College System's (NCCCS) tradition of excellence by modeling key strategies of the business sector. These strategies included: (1) Economies of scale, a term that refers to unit cost decreasing as number of units…

This study investigated factors impinging upon the successful implementation of reform in New Jersey's special needs or Abbott districts. Surveys of 28 Abbott districts examined the extent to which districts embraced remedial measures in the Supreme Court's rulings; perceived compatibility between remedial measures embodied in the reform and prior…

Inclusion of students with disabilities into schools is mandated by law, but inclusion programs are often overlaid onto the school much as pieces of fabric are appliqued onto a preexisting cloth. Few programs have succeeded in interweaving inclusion into the tapestry of the school. Since research has shown a connection between inclusion and the…

Noting that research in New Zealand and internationally indicates the importance of the early years for children's well-being, learning, and social participation in the present and for the future, this long-term strategic plan offers a comprehensive and cohesive policy framework, goals, and strategies for early childhood education in New Zealand…

Noting that one of the most challenging tasks educators face in improving parent involvement, particularly among parents of English as a Second Language (ESL) students, this paper describes categories of parent involvement, examines several barriers to parent involvement, and offers suggestions for improving parent involvement. Suggestions for…

This report describes the discussion and outcomes of a national summit on barriers to student learning that brought together leaders representing national, state, and local agencies and organizations. The report highlights specific gaps in policy and practice related to five fundamental areas: (1) measures to abate economic inequities/restricted…

This paper analyzes planning at Red River College in Manitoba. The paper suggests that the decision-making process be effectively linked with analytics. The fundamental role of institutional research and planning in postsecondary education is to provide the analytic and planning inputs that can facilitate decision-making. It is necessary to…

This paper presents a contextual framework for analysis of Hispanic leadership in higher education and reviews the demographics of Hispanic college presidents, their challenges, and related leadership issues. It can be argued that Hispanic leadership in higher education brings a socially marginalized experience that, by emphasizing social justice,…

This tool was created in order to help young people and adults develop a common language for talking about how to improve schools. The tool provides educators, young people, administrators, policy makers, parents, community members and other stake holders with a common lens for reflecting on their schools and for planning change. It can also be…

This report looks at the conversion work in three large comprehensive high schools in Washington State with a focus on what was learned in the early years. Each school takes a unique approach but common themes emerge, including the importance of strong principal leadership, the use of data, a transparent decision-making process, and a commitment…

In attempting to provide answers to the questions posed by the British Columbia Council on Admissions and Transfer, the consultant examined practices of credit transfer between and among both public and private institutions in selected jurisdictions outside British Columbia and discussed the questions with representatives of public and private…

Several years after the passage of NCLB, there are persistently low-performing schools in every state that face increasingly strong consequences for failing to improve student achievement sufficiently. Schools failing to make AYP for five consecutive years must engage in restructuring to improve student learning. Districts have several options for…