The "Policy to Performance Toolkit" is designed to provide state adult education staff and key stakeholders with guidance and tools to use in developing, implementing, and monitoring state policies and their associated practices that support an effective state adult basic education (ABE) to postsecondary education and training transition…

This report provides six mini-case studies of higher education policy reforms enacted in other states, exploring the important role that state policy leadership played in developing, promoting, and implementing these policies aimed at improving higher education outcomes, and discussing the relevance of each reform effort for California. This…

The educational reform strategies of Texas, California, and South Carolina are examined as they relate to reform outcomes. The current effort toward educational excellence must shift its focus from regulation and compliance monitoring to mobilization of institutional capacity. (SLD)

This guide for selecting library materials for residents of state institutions is designed to help the institutional librarian who has special groups to serve and who does not have access to standard acquisition tools. The first section lists what information is necessary to order materials, provides samples of filled-in order forms, and mentions…

Discusses the development of computing networks for elementary and secondary schools in Virginia and Texas. Highlights include establishing a statewide infrastructure; Internet access; distributed computing; instructional resources; the changing role of State Departments of Education; teacher training and support; and policy issues, including…

Three states, Ohio, Texas, and Arkansas were selected to study implementation of policies relating to the identification of gifted students from special populations, i.e., culturally diverse students, economically disadvantaged students, and students with disabilities. Individual profiles were completed for each state, and a cross state comparison…

This document examines the school-to-work transition issue from a state, national, and global perspective. Chapter 1 explores problems facing youths entering the job market, demands of the global marketplace and changing economy, critical skills needed by workers, and benefits of integrating academic and workplace skills in the classroom. Chapter…

The provision of secondary vocational education to adult offenders in the Texas state prison system was assessed. Discussions held with inmates established that most adult inmates are former at-risk youths who eventually dropped out of high school and who have low self-esteem and poor morale because of their frustrating educational experiences.…

Articles in seven newsletters of the Intercultural Development Research Association's Mental Health Research Project emphasize community mental health, human, and child welfare services to Mexican Americans, particularly in Texas. Topics include social policy formation in child welfare services, utilization of community mental health clinics…

More than 60 studies on prison education were reviewed to determine the following: relationship between prison education and offender behavior; effects of prison population control strategies on prison education programs; and effects of academic and vocational program participation on inmate misconduct and reincarceration. Among the main findings…

As mandated by state law, the Texas Education Agency presents a summary of data relating to grade-level retention of students reported by grade, ethnicity, and gender. The reported total number of students who repeated a grade in Texas schools in 1992-93 was 118,888. An additional 3,243 students, or 1.24% of the first grade, were placed in…

A study reviewed the efforts of six states (California, Florida, Minnesota, Oregon, Texas, and Washington) to create new policies and strategies to support low-income individuals as they work. The study found the following: (1) working steadily initially after leaving welfare is linked to being employed in later years but is not linked to higher…

State policies and activities for systematizing work force development were examined through a survey completed by individuals involved in work force development in 40 states and case studies of policies and programs in Texas, Utah, Florida, and Michigan. Throughout all levels of government and the private sector, consensus that work force…

A Texas State Job Training Coordinating Council task force developed a series of recommendations regarding improving Texas' current employment and training system to prepare the state's residents for the "smart jobs of the future." A formal literature review was conducted, and regional forums were held and attended by a wide range of…

The first in a series of publications addressing issues of linkage and coordination of job training programs in Texas, this paper focuses on the background of federal and state events requiring new strategies for coordination of job training programs in Texas and examines the nature and purpose of coordination of job training activities and…