This report illustrates the statewide implementation and effectiveness of school breakfast in Ohio. In the 2024-2025 school year, approximately 94% of Ohio schools with USDA nutrition programs serve breakfast. In the 2023-2024 school year, 27.2% of enrolled children participated in the School Breakfast Program and 54.5% participated in the…

Background: ADHD is a generally persistent neurodevelopmental condition that can have significant consequences if left untreated, and medication, often in conjunction with psychotherapy, is the first-line treatment with well-established efficacy. Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) represent a particularly vulnerable and understudied subgroup and…

The present study contributes to the body of work addressing the need for diversity in the educator workforce. The study examines six grant-funded projects designed to increase the diversity of teacher candidates, support these candidates through licensure, and ultimately increase the diversity of the teacher workforce in Ohio. Data was gathered…

"Pathways to Implementation" highlights innovative strategies and effective models in career pathways policy, implementation, and programming, as well as challenges states encounter in this work. This seven-part series addresses the key elements of Bellwether's framework for career pathways policy implementation. Each brief defines the…

The school meal programs provide nutritious meals to millions of students each day. In fiscal year 2023, federal spending for these programs was $21 billion. It is unclear how many charter schools participate in these programs or what factors can affect their participation. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) was asked to review charter…

The population of adult learners with Some College, No Credential (SCNC) has risen over the years to over 40 million individuals. A smaller subset of this population has debt that they owe their institutions directly in addition to state, federal, or private loans. As of 2020, approximately 6.6 million students owed more than $15 billion in…

The Office of Early Learning and School Readiness provides technical assistance and resources for our partners working with families, preschool staff and communities to meet the individual needs of preschool children with disabilities. The goal of this manual is to offer information to preschool programs and school districts that are responsible…

Lead poisoning from ingestion of bullet fragments in gut piles and unretrieved deer carcasses continues to cause mortality in bald eagles. To address this issue, the Midwest region of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) initiated an outreach program during 2016-2018 encouraging hunters to voluntarily use nonlead ammunition while deer…

Benefits of summer bridge and early arrival experiences include the academic and social integration of incoming first-year students into their chosen institutions. The unprecedented nature of the COVID-19 pandemic created opportunities to re-imagine delivery of activities and engagement of incoming first-year students in summer bridge and early…

Getting a head start on college coursework in high school has become an even more important goal for high school students in recent years, due in part to the rising costs of obtaining traditional four-year college degrees coupled with the disruptions in learning for high school and college students due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now more than ever,…

It is vital that teachers today eschew white supremacy and actively work toward being antiracist in both the content they teach in their classrooms and the ways in which they teach that content, now more than ever before. This paper chronicles the journey that one teacher preparation program has embarked upon to intentionally prepare antiracist…

Each August, prior to going back to school, all school-age students and their parents in the southeast Ohio community served by the Gallia County Health Department have an opportunity to visit the county health fair. This program, which draws 350 to 400 people each year, is a collaborative effort of the county health department, job and family…

The five-year initiative New Skills for Youth (NSFY) aimed to transform career readiness education and bridge the skills gap by supporting innovative strategies in 10 states across the United States. NSFY was one of the earliest and most impactful philanthropic investments in career pathways and career readiness in recent history and helped spark…

The "Like Me: Diversifying the Educator Workforce" program was developed at Lourdes University to address the disparate proportion of teachers of color in local classrooms as compared to the students of color. To gauge the impact of "Like Me" recruitment efforts, faculty at Lourdes University conducted a qualitative study…

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) helps people with low incomes avoid hunger and afford food. It stimulates the economy, improves individuals' success at school and work, and promotes better health. SNAP's Employment and Training (E&T) program is designed to assist participants in gaining skills, training, or work experience…