This background paper on institutional lending examines institutional lender policy in the Stafford Student Loan Program, the study of which was mandated in the 1986 reauthorization of the Higher Education Act. The paper's particular purpose, however, is to familiarize the reader with the general operation of programs and the historical…

Teachers in Kentucky are using portfolios to determine strengths and weaknesses of individual students. Consequently, instruction is centered totally around the student. The implementation of portfolios sends the message to students that their first efforts should not be their last. Revision is part of improvement, and students are expected to…

Virginia Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 53 directed the State Crime Commission to study law enforcement training, including current standards and technology, the need for improved delivery of training, and the costs of implementing new standards and erecting appropriate facilities. During the course of the study, commission staff conducted five…

The Better Care for the Babies (BCTB) Project was initiated in April 1989 to help states improve the quality of infant and toddler child care, especially for low-income children whose parents are in the labor force and/or making the transition from welfare to work. The BCTB Project initiated ongoing, negotiated, goal-directed technical assistance…

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) recently expanded its national survey to include state representative samples on a trial basis. In 1992, the NAEP undertook studied non-response in the trial assessment through two simulation projects. The first looked at state assessments that were similar to NAEP tests for states with low…

As Kansas schools have begun to work through the Quality Performance Accreditation (QPA) process, educators have asked for guidance and the establishment of some uniform parameters. This publication is one of the guides designed to lead schools through the school improvement process called for in the QPA. Creating a school profile is a way of…

This report presents the results of a telephone survey conducted in 1997 and 1998 of the 50 State Higher Education Finance Officers in regard to performance budgeting and performance funding of public higher education. It was found that 21 states used some form of performance budgeting in public higher education in 1998, up from 16 in 1997, and…

In 1937, the Michigan Library Association recommended to the Legislature that state funding be provided to public libraries and that a state board for libraries be appointed. In 1965, Public Act 286 established 24 library systems whose membership comprised approximately one-third of the public libraries in the state. Under Public Act 89 of 1977,…

Smart Start is North Carolina's partnership between state government and local leaders, service providers, and families to better serve children under 6 years of age and their families. This report describes the comprehensive plan to evaluate the state and local goals and objectives of the program, focusing on the components addressing the…

This paper presents a review of theory and research dealing with alternative teacher certification policy. It begins by examining the context for alternative teacher certification through the lens of Human Capital Theory. It defines alternative certification and describes the history and present status of alternative certification policies. The…

This paper discusses a number of interventions that are aimed at increasing educational opportunities of homeless students in the United States. Only a few of these programs have been locally evaluated, and the evaluation process is particularly challenging for local evaluators to undertake. At a state and national level, commitment to evaluation…

The National Center for Children in Poverty is developing a series of issue briefs on children and welfare reform to help policymakers, community leaders, and advocates use the opportunities afforded by welfare changes in ways that are most likely to benefit both children and adults. This second issue brief focuses on the impact of federal and…

Kansas has schools that compare well with the rest of the states. Kansas has met the 90% high school completion goal, with one of the highest graduation rates in the country and a low dropout rate. Kansas is also making significant progress in school readiness, with increasing numbers of Kansas women receiving early prenatal care, and fewer…

This brochure describes the state of Washington's efforts to improve its educational program and to ensure that the state's young people are receiving the knowledge and skills they will need in the 21st century. In 1993, Washington established a Commission on Student Learning to work toward four educational goals. These goals call for students to:…

This report is part of a multi-year project to examine the effects of standards-based assessment reform on schools and classrooms. During the past year, the project investigated school and classroom effects of assessment reforms in the state of Kentucky, a state that has been at the forefront of the standards-based assessment movement. This report…