The Tennessee Higher Education Commission (THEC) was charged by state statute with developing a statewide Master Plan for the future development of public universities, community colleges, and colleges of applied technology, with input from the Board of Regents and the University of Tennessee Board of Trustees. The overriding function of the Plan…

New Leaders is a nonprofit organization with a mission to ensure high academic achievement for all students by developing outstanding school leaders to serve in urban schools. Its premise is that a combination of preparation and improved working conditions for principals, especially greater autonomy, would lead to improved student outcomes. Its…

New Leaders is dedicated to promoting student achievement by developing outstanding school leaders to serve in urban schools. RAND Corporation researchers conducted a formative and summative external evaluation of the New Leaders program, its theory of action, and its implementation from 2006 through 2013. This document presents technical…

Teachers, curriculum experts, and other educators work together using online tools developed by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to create high-quality, useful lessons and research-based instructional tools incorporating the Common Core State Standards.

Writing is an essential skill for participating in modern American society. Although it is crucial to careers and civic engagement, student writing falls far short of national expectations (College Board, 2004; NCES, 2012; Persky, Daane, & Jin, 2003). The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) seek to increase the rigor of writing instruction…

The Career Ladder Program, one aspect of Tennessee's Better Schools Program, includes a career ladder for all school personnel, substantial incentive pay for performance and responsibility, competency-based performance evaluation for all school personnel, professional development programs addressing needs identified in evaluation, and new…

Annually, ACT provides a snapshot of the college and career readiness of ACT-tested high school graduates. This report is offered as a service to inform policymakers and practitioners about selected indicators of effectiveness and how that translates into readiness. It is designed to stimulate discussion, inquiry, and action. This report for the…

The Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and the University of Tennessee have established a measurement and controls research center and a master's-level academic engineering program. A description of this university/industry cooperative research center is provided. Indicates that a doctoral program is planned when the master's program is well…

This paper reports on research that examined longitudinal data on students entering Tennessee Board of Regents institutions of higher education after the implementation of a state-mandated developmental studies program. The program identifies and helps at-risk students to persist in college to graduation. Data analysis is presented from a 1986…

Intended primarily for principals and guidance counselors, this monograph contains 13 articles written by practitioners associated with the Comprehensive Career Development Project for Secondary Schools in Tennessee. These articles share the thoughts, ideas, and experiences of practitioners who have implemented or planned for the implementation of…

Intended primarily for principals and guidance counselors, this monograph contains 15 articles written by practitioners associated with, and staff of, the Comprehenisve Career Development Project for Secondary Schools in Tennessee. The following articles are included: "Changes: From Crisis Counseling to a Comprehensive Career Development…

This training manual is designed to help English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) teachers and supervisors successfully develop a workplace ESOL class. Four modules include: (1) "Knowing and Presenting Your Adult Education Program to Business and Industry" (e.g., introduction to Tennessee's Workplace ESOL Initiative, the four-step…

Annually, ACT provides a snapshot of the college and career readiness of ACT-tested high school graduates. This report is offered as a service to inform policymakers and practitioners about selected indicators of effectiveness and how that translates into readiness. It is designed to stimulate discussion, inquiry, and action. This report is…

With the objectives of assisting state educators in designing school leadership programs, school administrators in Tennessee were surveyed to determine levels of training and perceived training needs. Questionnaires were administered in 1986 to school board members, principals, and superintendents. Part 1 of the questionnaire dealt with…

The state mandated Tennessee Career Ladder program has five levels: (1) the probationary certificate for the first-year teacher; (2) the apprentice certificate, issued upon satisfactory completion of the probationary year; (3) the Career Level I certificate, issued upon satisfactory performance at the apprentice level; (4) the Career Level II…