Significant improvements in funding the initiation of new educational programs and the improvement of existing programs have been achieved in Oklahoma in the past two years. (Author/MLF)

The factors affecting funding levels of South Carolina's public elementary and secondary school districts must be reexamined. If state education monies for 1988-89 had been distributed to compensate fully for local tax variations, the state's wealthiest districts would have received a 31.8% funding decrease and the poorest districts would have…

Describes how concern about Black male college attendance and retention has become a front and center public policy research priority in Georgia. (EV)

Describes how public colleges in some states have levied their biggest tuition increases in decades, while others are tightening residency requirements and charging new students more than their returning peers. (EV)

Discusses key issues surrounding state higher education tuition prepayment plans, including the inability of state legislatures to raise future tuition levels, the risks incurred by states, and overall equity concerns. One problem: the program seems targeted for middle and upper classes and traditional college-age students. Examines alternative…

Disenchantment with 1980s school reform progress has produced school choice--the get-tough, marketplace approach to school improvement. Choice proposals in California fit two categories: interdistrict plans and intradistrict plans. The latter is already a common option featuring open enrollment and management and continuation schools. Two sidebars…

The key to good health and longevity is a physically active lifestyle, not an early career of varsity sports or sporadic flurries of fitness training. Evidence shows that young children who receive daily physical education show significant academic improvement. Beneficiaries of mandated programs are the least likely to participate in voluntary…

As a penalty for violations, the NCAA cancelled SMU's football program for 1987 and limited the 1988 season. An alumnus filed a class action alleging antitrust violations of price-fixing and group boycott. Issues of antitrust standing, violation and state action, and the court's handling of these issues are discussed. (Author/MLW)

An exploratory study of five high schools involved in the Connecticut State Department of Education's Secondary School Development Project suggests that student performance factors (early termination, academic achievement, and student attendance) may be linked to effective school characteristics. This article summarizes the mixed results of the…

In the end, Connecticut's ambitious plan to reform its schools collapsed because of failure to connect with parents. The controversial outcome-based education plan failed because the planning committee had too many insiders, lacked a clear vision, and used vague language to convey its recommendations and sell inadequately defined standards. (MLH)

At best, competency testing should be used as just one indicator of an individual's proficiency as a school administrator. Evaluation alternatives include the use of assessment centers, on-the-job training and/or assessment, alternative forms of testing, multiple competency indicators, better recruitment strategies, and enhanced school…

Discusses two separate studies showing that New Jersey's alternative route to teacher certification taxes schools' resources while failing to provide adequate teacher training. Although Texas schools have acknowledged that their program drains their resources and have cut back on the number of teachers trained in alternative routes, New Jersey…

During the early eighties, state responsibility for funding public education increased along with the dollars allocated to public education. The more aggressive states benefited from the period's rapid economic expansion. In part, educational reform was advocated due to the relatively low cost in new tax dollars. A healthy economy seems necessary…

Briscoe's article explains how PennServe, Pennsylvania's youth service program, converts young people from a problem to a community resource of which to be proud. Silcox explains various facets of a Philadelphia high school's PennServe program and shows how school-based service has changed attitudes, values, and relationships and enlivened…

Recent state reform waves can be classified into three packages (academic standards, professional policy, and curriculum development) stressing productivity, efficiency, and educational excellence. Following a historical overview, this article discusses implementation models and strategies, lessons learned, state-local school district…