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,…

Although comprehensive school counseling programs are implemented widely across the country, school counselors face myriad barriers to implementation. As such, we conducted a multilevel, descriptive case study to examine a school counseling cohort preparing to apply for the American School Counselor Association's Recognized ASCA Model Program…

To counter tuition and textbook costs for degree-seeking students, a specific pathway to a bachelor's degree in Leadership was developed. The pathway, comprised of partnerships with the high school Leadership Academy at a public high school, community college, and Old Dominion University (ODU), reduced tuition and textbook costs, allowing the…

This qualitative study explores perceptions of a dropout recovery program implemented in two high schools in Waterway School District from the perspectives of program facilitators, school administrators, and former student participants. Individual interviews, focus group interviews, and an online questionnaire are the sources of data for the…

Empirical Education Inc. is the independent evaluator of SRI International's 2014 Investing in Innovation (i3) Development grant called Redesigning Secondary Courses to Improve Academic Outcomes for Adolescents with Disabilities and Other Underperforming Adolescents. The goal of the grant is to develop "Enhanced Units" that combine…

Immigrant and refugee youth who enter the United States during their secondary school years face a daunting set of challenges. In addition to learning a new language and adjusting to U.S. classroom norms, they must quickly fill gaps in their subject-matter knowledge and pass the courses required to graduate high school before aging out of the…

The goal of the Rural Math Excel Partnership (RMEP) project, a development project funded by the U.S. Department of Education Investing in Innovation (i3) grant program, was to develop a model of shared responsibility among families, teachers, and communities in rural areas as collective support for student success in and preparation for advanced…

Senior year of high school can be a pivotal time in a young person's life. For some, it is the last step on the path to college and work. For others, finding stable employment or attending university after high school is far from guaranteed. Urban Alliance, headquartered in Washington, DC, helps students at risk of becoming disconnected from work…

In a country with an increasing population of nonwhite students, there are far too few teachers of color. The numbers are particularly distressing when it comes to finding male teachers of color, who are essential role models for black boys. As a result, black and Latino children sitting in classrooms with white teachers, day after day and year…

This explanatory mixed-methods study began with a quantitative survey to investigate counselor beliefs and implementation behaviors related to providing college and career planning services to high school students. Survey results informed the development and implementation of interview protocol designed to provide deeper insight into counselors'…

This randomized controlled study examined disciplinary outcomes for 201 students who made threats of violence at school. The students attended 40 schools randomly assigned to use the Virginia Student Threat Assessment Guidelines or follow a business-as-usual disciplinary approach in a control group. Logistic regression analyses found, after…

The authors investigated the design and implementation of the capstone courses that are part of Virginia's College and Career Readiness Initiative. Based on a set of performance expectations for college readiness, two capstone courses--one in English and one in mathematics--were developed to help support high school juniors and seniors who intend…

This report presents baseline and process study findings of an evaluation of the Urban Alliance high school internship program, which provides training, mentoring, and work experience to high school seniors from distressed communities in Washington, DC, Baltimore, Northern Virginia, and Chicago. The report, which focuses on the program's…

Schools in the United States have struggled with graduation rates for nearly 140 years. School divisions are continuously searching for new and creative curriculums to address changing student needs. From the U.S. Department of Education to local school board members, educators are working to discover creative and accountable alternatives to…

This is the final external evaluation report prepared by SRI International for the Rural Math Excel Partnership (RMEP) project, an investing in innovation (i3) development project funded by the U.S. Department of Education. Operated by Virginia Advanced Study Strategies, Inc. (VASS), the RMEP project included six rural school districts (LEAs) in…