This article covers recent developments in the United States Refugee Resettlement Program and discusses the program's future. A formal refugee pollicy is a recent phenomenon, initiated with the passage of the 1980 Refguee Act. With the passage of the Act, greater attention has been paid to developing procedures for resettlement, and the…

Federal education policy should: (1) define objectives and targets of its activities more precisely; (2) define minimal conditions of organizational performance; (3) distinguish among sources of variability in state-local program implementation; and (4) specify the relationship between strategy and structure. (CJ)

Notes why the family is not considered in drug policy and programing and asserts that existing conditions demand conscious consideration of the family in efforts of federal drug agencies. Data show changing parameters of drug use-abuse. A research and prevention agenda that integrates the family is presented. (Author/BEF)

The education evaluation efforts of the federal government are discussed, focusing on the question of their effectiveness in informing the policymaking process. Successful evaluation criteria are outlined. An evaluation must provide useful information to policymakers to be a success. (DWH)

This paper offers proposals for streamlining and simplifying the federal student loan programs in light of legislative and budgetary changes in progress during the early part of the Clinton Administration. The recommendations are based on 35 proposals submitted by institutions, associations, guaranty agencies, secondary markets, lenders, and loan…

Results of evaluation research studies, even those that are meticulously designed and carefully executed, often are not implemented. This article examines some of the critical factors that mediate between the carrying out of evaluation research and the utilization of findings. To illustrate these factors, two case studies are analyzed. (Author/EGS)

Discusses enactment, implementation, feedback, and reformulation of P.L. 93-638, permitting tribes to assume control of federal Indian programs. Focuses on 1975-80, during which policymakers addressed the lack of responsiveness by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Indian Health Service to tribal takeover demands. Contains 26 references. (SV)

The social security system in the United States is becoming increasingly unstable, as the amount of benefits paid to an ever larger number of retirees grows and the number of younger workers paying taxes to the system decreases. The problem will become especially acute in the years 2011 and after, as the members of the "baby boom"…

This document presents a comprehensive picture of educational personnel development. In addition to updating Federal and state involvement in educational development, the report begins with a history of professional development of teachers and ends with an analysis of research on teacher education. It is divided into the following major sections:…

Suggests four criteria (efficiency, return on investment, incentives, and equity) for evaluating and comparing public programs for poor children, and provides an overview of information available on eight large federal programs using these criteria. Positive effects of some programs are noted, and policy recommendations the evidence supports are…

This paper analyzes the merits of proposals to encourage saving for college by permitting families to use funds accumulated in Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA's) to pay postsecondary education expenses. The paper argues that tax treatment of such expenditures might parallel that for expenditures of IRA's for retirement purposes--deferring tax…

This study argues for the use of public service employment (PSE) as a portion of an anti-recessionary fiscal policy package to include public works and tax cuts. Keynesian economics, deficit spending in this case, serves as the study's underpinnings. Chapter 1 reviews public service employment's current low status as an anti-recessionary measure.…

When delivering educational programs for commercial farmers, public policy educators should include some major points related to upcoming deliberations on the 1995 farm bill. This paper provides background material for public policy educators on the following questions. When do farm program benefits become so low that farmers decide not to…

Little coordination exists among the various federal, state, and local initiatives for educational intervention programs for specially targeted populations. This paper discusses issues involved in the development of coordinated educational programs for disadvantaged pupils, with particular reference to Chapter 1 of the Education Consolidation and…

A significant number of current and former Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients have various barriers to finding and maintaining employment. Among the most common barriers are physical and mental health problems, domestic violence, low skill levels, lack of adequate or affordable housing, and limited proficiency in English.…