Coaches are trusted advisors, information conduits, sounding boards, and advocates who facilitate institutional change. This report summarizes findings from the first five years of the Student Success Center Network's Coaching Program, focusing particularly on the most recent phase that engaged directly with Centers in four states (California,…

A leadership academy is a formal professional learning opportunity for current school leaders, focused on augmenting knowledge and skills, increasing specialization, and refreshing leadership practices. States interested in supporting leadership academies through federal or other funding sources can look to current models of leadership academies…

Since 2016, the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEO), with generous support from Lumina Foundation, has been working with states to explore establishing "promise-type" aid programs for adult students (adult promise programs). SHEEO is currently working with 15 states to implement adult promise programs through…

Promise programs (also known as free college programs) have grown in popularity over the last few years. When targeted correctly, these programs have the potential to increase enrollment, retention, and graduation rates for underserved students. By focusing a promise program on adult students and including additional supports and services, states…

While their authority for program approval may vary from state to state, state boards of education should ensure that the secondary school career and technical education (CTE) programs are part of a continuum that prepares students for further education, training, and the workplace. By expanding apprenticeship programs, state boards can give…

This Special Report examines four principles for state leaders to consider as they develop or evaluate financial aid redesign reform efforts. The financial aid redesign principles, identified through a Thinkers Meeting that included experts from across the country, fall into four areas: Financial aid programs should be student-centered,…

This is the third paper on the topic of outcomes-based funding written by Dennis Jones for Complete College America. The first paper, "Performance Funding: From Idea to Action" (ED535356), proposed a set of design and implementation principles to help states develop and implement their own outcomes-based funding models. The second paper,…

High-quality professional development is needed to prepare teachers to help students learn how to conduct online academic research and meet Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts. This study created and evaluated a Web-based professional development program with five instructional modules designed to prepare middle-school teachers…

This brief provides contextual information and descriptions of select programs and practices serving Native students, regarding state identification and support, representation of Native student interest, and locally created examples. The National Comprehensive Center's American Indian and Alaska Native Education Project developed this brief to…