Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) invited 10 districts to participate in a community of practice designed to increase understanding of how to braid and blend federal funds. District teams composed of principals, superintendents, business managers, and other district leaders participated in four 90-minute virtual sessions. The purpose of…

Following the Department of Education's announcement of the $3.5 billion in Title I funding, 831 of the nation's "persistently lowest-achieving schools" received federal funding during the 2010-11 school year to embark on significant change in the form of a School Improvement Grant (U.S. Department of Education, 2010). The Department of…

State and local educators encountered both opportunities and obstacles in their first year of implementing the School Improvement Grants (SIGs) funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). In 2009, the ARRA, better known as the economic stimulus package, provided $3 billion for SIGs to help reform persistently low-achieving…

Two schools in Idaho received ARRA SIG (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act School Improvement Grants) funds to enable them to implement improvement efforts. This paper describes the outcomes of these two ARRA SIG recipient schools: (1) Jefferson Middle School; and (2) Lakeside Elementary School. The experiences of this non-recipient school is…

Two schools in Michigan received ARRA SIG (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act School Improvement Grants) funds to enable them to implement their improvement efforts. This paper describes the outcomes of these two ARRA SIG recipient schools: (1) Phoenix Elementary-Middle School; and (2) Arthur Hill High School. The experiences of these…

Two schools in Maryland received ARRA SIG (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act School Improvement Grants) funds to enable them to implement their turnaround efforts. This paper describes the outcomes of these two ARRA SIG recipient schools: (1) G. James Gholson Middle School; and (2) Commodore John Rodgers Elementary School. The experiences of…

To assist directors of local migrant projects in planning/developing a project application and in implementing/evaluating migrant projects, this guide also serves as a reference or checklist for mandated responsibilities, as an outline of good management, as an evaluative instrument to both new and experienced project directors who wish to assess…

To assess the state's role as an instrument of national education policy, researchers examined four states' responses to federal programs under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and under the Education for All Handicapped Children Act. They focused, first, on how states' political and organizational contexts interacted with…

Military cutbacks by the Department of Defense will cause thousands of enlisted personnel and civilian workers in defense industries to lose their jobs and look toward other employment opportunities. To help ease this conversion for some displaced employees, the Department of Defense is sponsoring a program to help former servicepeople earn…

This study examined the delivery of Elementary and Secondary Education Act Title I services to private schools through an analysis of a national survey of Title I programs, an examination of the implementation of the program in 50 school districts and by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and a review of the monitoring efforts of 41 state education…

Over time, compensatory education has become an increasingly institutionalized and effective Federal program, characterized by the following: (1) cooperation; (2) mutual accommodation on the part of national, state, and local officials; (3) ready acquiescence to Federal guidelines at the state and local level; and (4) shared responsibility among…

This paper analyzes design alternatives for Federal elementary and secondary education programs. It identifies the range of program strategies available and analyzes their strengths and weaknesses. The proper design for any program depends upon the following factors: (1) goals; (2) the availability of Federal funding to pay for necessary services…

Drawing on data from a study of Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, this report analyzes the technical assistance that local districts receive in compensatory education, with an emphasis on the relationship between technical assistance and the local decision-making that ultimately shapes the program. The first section describes…

This report details the theoretical framework, methodology, and findings of research into the impact of Parent Advisory Councils (PACs) on the management and administration of Title I programs at the local level. The eight school districts studied were selected because they varied in their orientations toward PAC involvement in Title I, and in…

This study examines and compares the perceptions of educational professionals and non-professional personnel concerning Parent Advisory Council members' degree of participatory decision making in the administration of Title I programs in New York City. The sample of educational professionals consisted of New York City district superintendents,…