Within Massachusetts alone, 23,000 students are experiencing homelessness. And, with the expiration of COVID-era protections like an eviction moratorium and rental assistance, many experts predict that number will increase. Child and family homelessness is associated with a host of negative outcomes including poor physical and mental health, lower…

In this study, the Rennie Center for Education Research & Policy sought to uncover the ways in which Massachusetts schools and districts support students' behavioral health needs. This study was guided by the following research questions: (1) What are districts doing to integrate social, emotional and behavioral health supports? (2) What are…

In order to inform the Indiana State Board of Education's decision-making on Indiana's On My Way Pre-K Pilot program, researchers at the Center for Evaluation and Education Policy (CEEP) at Indiana University compiled existing data on ten states that have implemented pilot pre-Kindergarten (pre-K) programs and subsequently expanded these programs…

The Career and Technical Education (CTE) playbook series has explored strategies and processes states can use to strengthen CTE program quality and provide students with pathways to postsecondary credentialing and middle- and higher wage career opportunities. In the first three CTE Playbooks, ExcelinEd provided a high-level view of how states can…

Single Stop U.S.A.'s Community College Initiative was designed to improve the well-being of low-income communities by connecting individuals to public benefits and other institutional and community resources to address nonacademic barriers to college completion. Through offices located on community college campuses, Single Stop provides students…

A new class of financial tools is being developed to promote human capital investments that benefit society. Social innovation financing (SIF) entails raising private capital to support promising social interventions, with the expectation that those providing the funding will eventually be repaid. Funds are allocated based on service providers'…

Career and technical education (CTE) is increasingly seen as a major potential contributor to the recovery of the U.S. economy. However, the effectiveness and impact of the current Carl D. Perkins Act (otherwise known as Perkins IV) that governs CTE are unclear. Is the federal investment in CTE paying off? To answer this, we need to establish the…

The English Language Learner (ELL) Summer Camp in Worcester, Massachusetts--an intensive six-week program that served middle school and high school students from Worcester Public Schools (WPS)--was the product of a five-way partnership that included the school district, higher education institutions (Latino Education Institute [LEI] at Worcester…

Children who are diagnosed with autism before three years old gain access to Early Intensive Specialized Services (EISS), which can result in significant improvements in social skills, communication, adaptive behavior, and cognitive functioning. Studies have found that children with autism who begin intervention earlier improve more in their…

The purpose of this study was two-fold. It was first to find out what the educational materials needs were for children living in poverty, and second, to learn of the challenges, obstacles, and strengths by the programs already in place that were supplying educational materials to these children. This study used interviews and surveys as data…

The free and open publication of course materials (OpenCourseWare or OCW) was initially undertaken by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and other universities primarily to share educational resources among educators (Abelson, 2007). OCW, however, and more in general open educational resources (OER), have also provided well-documented…

The "Touching Hearts, Touching Minds" initiative was funded through a 2003 United States Department of Agriculture Special Projects grant to revitalize nutrition education and services in the Massachusetts Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program. The 30 nutrition education materials and…

This article traces the development of the OpenCourseWare movement, including the origin of the concept at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the implementation of the MIT OpenCourseWare project, and the idea's spread into the global educational community, ultimately resulting in the formation of the OpenCourseWare Consortium. The…

The learning resources programs analyzed in this report include the library, audiovisual, television, and production services of 15 Massachusetts community colleges. The study is based on a questionnaire/checklist developed from the 1972 Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) guidelines for 2-year college learning resources programs…

Urban Teacher Residencies (UTRs) are an emerging innovation designed to embody best practices in recruitment, screening, preparation, placement, induction, and teacher leadership for urban school districts. UTRs can be a key element of urban districts' portfolio of pathways into teaching and a lynchpin of a larger strategy to strengthen the…