Teacher mentorship programs, where new teachers are paired with veterans, are a research-based practice, but they often lack clarity and can turn into more of a "buddy system" than a true learning opportunity. In this new report, Why New Teacher Mentoring Falls Short, and How to Fix It, NIET shares research and experience that point to…

The purpose of the present qualitative multiple case study was to identify and describe sustainability efforts and the perceptions of sustainability managers of selected higher education institutions (HEIs) in Texas. Through a Qualtrics survey and semi-structured interviews, sustainability managers shared their experiences regarding the…

Students who struggle to read on grade level by the end of third grade are less likely to make academic progress and graduate before the age of 19. The district leaders in a suburban district in Texas were interested in determining the root cause of stagnant reading standardized test scores. After determining the root cause, a lack of a…

A quality improvement system (QIS) is an intentional effort to raise the quality of afterschool programming in an ongoing, organized fashion. There are a number of reasons the QIS is gaining popularity. The main reasons community leaders are drawn to improving quality is that they know that 1) higher quality programs will mean better experiences…

The surge of high-stakes testing and accountability has been felt in Texas and all across the country. Every state is demanding to some degree or another that administrators and teachers increase their workload, alter their teaching, rearrange the curriculum, adjust professional development, and implement improvement programs in order to raise…

The Texas Education Agency (TEA) and the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) joined hands in 2005 to enhance dramatically implementation of the "High Schools That Work" ("HSTW") improvement design in the state. Between 2005 and 2010, nearly 50 high schools in five cohorts joined the Texas Enhanced "HSTW" Network…

This research examines the effectiveness of early intervention on academic success for at-risk students. An intervention program is implemented in a minority serving public university by providing counseling and advising to academically at-risk students. Student performance is monitored and evaluated to explore whether early intervention impacts…

This document on state-level planning for education in Texas by the Texas Education Agency consists of two papers. The first focuses on the long-range plan of the State Board of Education for Texas public school education. The paper summarizes this plan, describes the process by which it was developed, and analyzes the status of its implementation…

The Developmental Strategies for College Readiness and Success Resource Guide was produced by the Education Commission of the States and the Southern Regional Education Board for the "Countdown to 2015: Developmental Strategies to Advance Readiness in the Common Core Era" convening held April 21-23, 2014 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The…

This paper explores the range of ways in which school districts are using Title I funds for early education through kindergarten and examines how the implementation of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) has impacted those investments. It also makes recommendations for local education agencies (LEAs) interested in creating Title I-funded early education…

This report examines the practices of vocational education programs that serve limited English-proficient (LEP) students without the benefit of federal bilingual vocational training funds. Visits were made to seven areas of the United States with large numbers of LEP persons: South Florida, Southern California, Connecticut, Metropolitan New York,…

The District Awards for Teacher Excellence's (D.A.T.E.'s) first year of implementation in 2008-09 occurred at a time when Texas was operating several state-funded performance pay programs. The three-year Governor's Educator Excellence Grant (G.E.E.G.) program was coming to its expected completion, while the Texas Educator Excellence Grant…

In 2004, Lumina Foundation for Education launched "Achieving the Dream: Community Colleges Count," a national initiative aimed at improving success among community college students, particularly low-income students and students of color. Now encompassing more than 130 institutions in 24 states and the District of Columbia, Achieving the…

This handbook was designed to assist school administrators, vocational administrators, vocational agricultural teachers, and area consultants of vocational agriculture in developing, implementing, and improving an agricultural cooperative training program (especially in Texas). The handbook, which presents information in a narrative format,…

This handbook is designed to help Texas junior/community college administrators and instructor-coordinators of marketing and distributive education to plan, implement, operate, and expand mid-management programs. The handbook contains five sections. Following the introductory first section that reviews the purpose, history, philosophy, and…