In October 2005, the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine released a policy report that served as a call to action. The report, "Rising Above the Gathering Storm: Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future" observed that "the scientific and technological building blocks…

First Generation undergraduate students from low-income households (FGLI students) continue to have substantially higher dropout rates than non first generation students or students from more affluent households despite numerous efforts over many decades to improve graduation rates among this group of students. The purpose of this research is to…

Objective: To determine whether differences in nutrition knowledge affected how women (a high-involvement group) interpreted intrinsic cues (ingredient list) and extrinsic cues ("all natural" label) on food labels. Methods: A 2 (intrinsic cue) x 2 (extrinsic cue) x 2 (nutrition knowledge expert vs novice) within-subject factorial design…

The Race to the Top (RTTT) program, announced by the Obama Administration in 2009, represented the largest competitive grant in the history of U.S. education. Despite the amount of money available and the dire condition of most state budgets in that year, however, some states chose not to apply for funding and the remainder submitted applications…

Purpose/Objective: This case study identified common elements of three diverse New England school districts that were real-world models of improving school meals. Methods: School districts that had greater than 1,000 students, [greater than or equal to]3 schools, and [greater than or equal to]40% of students who qualified for free- or…

Cross-sectional data reveal alarming financial situations among 2009 MSW graduates from 25 states and their loan decisions (N=260). More than a quarter of the participants owe at least $40,000 in educational loans from their MSW degree, and 30% borrowed at least $30,000 of their total college education debt. Expensive credit cards are used more…

Based on investigation and analysis of the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) review process and reports, this panel concluded that: (1) WWC procedures and processes for identifying and extracting information from intervention studies are generally well documented and follow reasonable standards and practices for systematic reviews; and (2) WWC…

The TRIO Programs Annual Performance Report (APR) System collects individual student records on individuals served by the following Federal TRIO Programs: Upward Bound (which includes regular Upward Bound (UB), Upward Bound Math-Science (UBMS), and Veterans Upward Bound (VUB)); Student Support Services (SSS); and the Ronald E. McNair Post…

For more than 5-years, the U.S. Department of Education has been developing and implementing a new data system, ED"Facts", designed to contain all the educational data it collects from states. This article provides a summary of the development of the new federal system and describes some of the benefits and challenges it poses for…

This article reports that by next fall--only months before she leaves office--U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings plans to have five teachers on her staff and set up a group of 20 ad hoc advisers still working in classrooms. Under the Teaching Ambassador Fellowship program the teachers would work at the department for one year starting…

The purpose of this study is to make transparent the current National School Lunch Program (NSLP). The first mission of this project is to clarify how the NSLP functions on a day-to-day basis in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus is used as a sample city, yet the aim of this research is to be transferable to other locations. The second objective is to…

This investigation developed, tested, and prototyped a Fuzzy Inference System (FIS) that would assist decision makers in identifying schools that may have been misclassified by existing Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) methods. This prototype was then used to evaluate Louisiana elementary schools using published school data for Academic Year 2004. …

The mission of the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) is to provide leadership to achieve full integration and participation in society of people with disabilities and to ensure equal opportunities in, access to, and excellence in education, employment and community living. In implementing this mission, OSERS…

The proposed federal stimulus package could help to strengthen existing programs with track records of proven performance and strong accountability and administrative systems. This is good news for afterschool programs leaders who can leverage existing relationships and sustainability plans to access new funding opportunities. In these times, a…

Constituting one-third of all U.S. institutions of higher education, emerging research institutions (ERIs) are crucial to sustaining the nation's technological competitiveness through innovation and workforce development. Many, however, are not fully engaged in sustained sponsored research. This book summarizes the discussions at a workshop…