The civic education policy framework and gap analysis tool are intended to guide state leaders as they address the complexities of preparing students for college, career and civic life. They allow for adaptation to state- and site-specific circumstances and may be adopted in whole or in piecemeal fashion, according to states' individual…

During the past decade, Catholic leaders have been exploring options to revitalize the faltering Catholic school system especially in urban centers. One route being explored by dioceses and religious orders is opening what have been called "religious charter schools." Though not technically religious schools, they integrate many of the…

Purpose: Studies show that there are far greater numbers of individuals certified to be educational administrators than of positions requiring such certification. Yet concerns regarding shortages abound, in part because of widespread perceptions of a lack of interest by teachers and administrative certificate holders in administrative work. This…

The authors are members of the Department of Business Administration, one of seven undergraduate departments in the College of Business (COB) at Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois. As part of both the COB's assessment plan and the Academic Quality Improvement Program (AQIP) of their regional accreditor, the authors assessed student learning…

Chicago has long been one of the national epicenters for public school reform. In many ways the reform efforts of the past decade in the Windy City have served as the blueprint for the current focus of federal education priorities. In particular, federal policy for school turnaround and transformation takes clear cues from the efforts that current…

This dissertation examines the student academic achievement through various mechanisms, put in place by the public school district, classroom student behavior, and negative external shocks to the students' living environment. I examine the impacts of various treatments on student short and long run academic outcomes such as math and English test…

This article discusses the incorporation of biological content into existing calculus courses without significantly changing the courses. This is exemplified by the common laboratory course taken by students in all first semester calculus courses at Benedictine University. Several biologically oriented projects are implemented in this laboratory…

Response to intervention (RTI) can be both a system for providing early interventions to struggling students and a special education diagnostic tool for evaluating and identifying students with specific learning disabilities. Contributing to the very limited literature on state-level approaches, this report describes how nine states define and…

The overall purpose of this evaluative project was to improve the administrative and programmatic aspects of public adult and continuing education programs in Illinois--particularly those funded under public law 91-230 (The Adult Education Act). A second major purpose was to provide a model for future evaluative efforts. Twenty local programs were…

Deals with some problems in the operation of a school in a white middle-class Chicago community and the attempt by a segment of the community to influence the direction of their school. (Author/JM)

Described in this paper is one state's approach to the development and operation of a Research Coordinating Unit (RCU), which is designed to orchestrate research and development activities in vocational education within a state. This approach, based on Illinois's model, depicts program improvement as a continuous process involving such activities…

The most powerful position in public schools is that of school superintendent, and it is a position dominated by men. Several factors account for the decline of women in superintendency. Perhaps the most important reason there are so few women in the superintendency is that women enter the teaching profession to teach children. Based on the…

This manual contains guidelines for organizing small business programs in community colleges. Following an introductory discussion of the need for such a program both throughout the United States in general and in Illinois in particular, the role of the community college in facilitating small business development is examined. Guidelines are set…

Intended for administrators, supervisors, and teachers, the booklet is designed as a source document for developing individualized education programs (IEPs) for handicapped children in Illinois as required by P.L. 94-142 (the Education for All Handicapped Children Act). Section I identifies and defines the following content areas of an IEP:…

The purpose of this research project was to develop a competency-based model graduate program for administrators of vocational education in Illinois. Directed through the joint efforts of two universities, the project involved the identification of 158 administrative competencies and an assessment of how these competencies might be achieved. Other…