This report provides background information on Forest Service (FS) and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) revenue-based payments and a brief overview of a related payment program--the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program. Because the revenue-based, Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act of 2000 (SRS), and PILT payments interact…

The Indiana Commission for Higher Education (ICHE) has adopted goals and policy strategies focused on increasing college access, success, and completion for underrepresented students. In 2013, the Commission passed a resolution to eliminate achievement gaps among Indiana's learner populations by 2025. Designed as a companion piece to the…

This report provides a descriptive comparison of the early care and education (ECE) landscape across rural, moderate-density urban (suburban), and high-density urban areas. The goal of this comparison was to understand whether ECE availability and characteristics in rural areas differ from those in more densely populated communities. We used…

Fourteen percent of the nation's population lives in rural communities, and one in five K-12 students attends a rural school. This is a substantial portion of the population, but it's far too often overlooked by education analysts, advocates, and policymakers. Rural communities tend to face some persistent challenges, including higher rates of…

This publication provides summary information on equity groups in vocational education and training (VET) delivered by 4601 Australian providers in 2014, under the first collection of "total VET activity" data. In 2014, there were: (1) 146,500 Indigenous students (3.7% of all students); (2) 201,000 students with a disability (5.1% of all…

Business as usual has not provided educational opportunities to world's most marginalized children. The South Asia Out-of-School Children Initiative (OOSCI) is part of the global initiative launched by UNICEF and the UNESCO Institute for Statistics (UIS) in 2010. The goal of the initiative is to make significant and sustained reduction in the…

Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation (TG) provides critical support to schools, students, and borrowers at every stage of the federal student aid process--from providing information on how to pay for a higher education including financial aid options, to facilitating successful loan repayment after graduation. This 2016 issue of "State…

This report presents comprehensive and detailed information on grades 7-12 dropout rates and on high school graduation rates in the Central Region. Dropout and graduation rates are presented for the region as a whole and for each state in the region, by gender, race/ethnicity, locale, and grade. The rates provide a comprehensive reference for…

The Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) is an independent, not-for-profit corporation designated as the administrator of the federal Universal Service Fund (USF) by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). USAC administers the Universal Service Fund and the four Universal Service programs: High Cost, Low Income, Rural Health Care,…

Changing state revenues have prompted heightened concern about the immediate short- and long-term future and stability of state investments in higher education. The 2007 Survey of the National Council of State Directors of Community Colleges (NCSDCC) is the third administration of questions to determine questions of access, funding and overall…

This paper provides background information for a Commission discussion regarding the challenges that community college districts confront when trying to serve rural and remote communities. The paper describes the dynamics of statewide and regional population growth occurring in California and an overview of program-based funding--the budgetary…

"SAMHSA News" is the national newsletter of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Published six times a year (bimonthly) by SAMHSA's Office of Communications, SAMHSA News contains information about the latest substance abuse and mental health treatment and prevention practices, recent statistics on mental health and…

A comparison of the Mid-Atlantic region (New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania) with the nation from 1974 to 1984 revealed that this region trailed New England and the nation in rate of employment growth between 1974-79 and 1979-84. The region had an above-average share of employment in the national fast-growth sectors (services, finance,…

The revolution in telecommunications technology will be a driving force in the future economic growth of rural areas. Federal and state universal service policies requiring delivery of service to rural areas were major factors in how the telephone system evolved during the 20th century. In the 1990s, telephone penetration rates were similar for…

Between 1990 and 2000, the Hispanic population of the West increased by 54 percent, compared to a 13 percent increase for non-Hispanics. The Hispanic population now represents 25 percent of the West's population, up from 19 percent in 1990. This information brief describes the increase in Hispanic populations in the West from 1990 to 2000 and…