This report explores the Annie E. Casey Foundation's Deep-End Initiative, which is helping juvenile justice jurisdictions safely and significantly reduce youth confinement -- especially for young people of color. In America today, youth of color are consistently over-represented in courtrooms and detention centers, youth prisons and other…

This report presents the latest analysis of the Early Childhood Development (ECD) programs and policies that affect young children in the People's Republic of China and poses overall recommendations to move forward. Shanghai, being a model for several developmental issues in China, is used as an example to help elucidate viewpoints whenever…

Data-driven decision making has become increasingly important in education. Policymakers require educators to use data to inform practice. Although the policy emphasis is growing, what has not increased is attention to building human capacity around data use. Educators need to gain data literacy skills to inform practice. Although some…

This report discusses findings and implications of a study commissioned by the College Board to inform the development of the Voluntary Framework of Accountability for Community Colleges. CCRC researchers identified the performance indicators that states are already using for their community colleges and interviewed state higher education…

High-quality out-of-school-time (OST) programs have a positive effect on youth development, but many cities have found it difficult to address the challenges of expanding and improving the quality of programs offered to underserved and high-need students. In response, The Wallace Foundation sponsored an initiative to help five cities increase…

A framework is presented for evaluating family centers in the context of the community environment. The family centers will be created in a variety of communities and under varying auspices. Several will be selected as prototype centers and, as such, will need more elaborate evaluation plans than the others. Prototype centers will need to evaluate…

This technical report presents issues related to defining and applying accountability systems for young children, including those with disabilities. It notes that reaching shared perspectives on definitions of accountability systems and their constituents remains complicated by the number of levels to which such systems can apply (e.g., child-,…

A theoretical basis for defining and measuring the quality of institutions of higher education, namely for accreditation purposes, is developed. The theory, the Attributive Theory of Quality, is illustrated using a calculation model that is based on general systems theory. The theory postulates that quality only exists in relation to the…

The report describes activities conducted during a 12-month baseline period preceding a series of longitudinal studies of the costs and effects of various types of early intervention with handicapped children conducted by the Early Intervention Research Institute at Utah State University. A systems theory perspective forms the theoretical base for…

Most administrators agree that school improvement and change are needed. Disagreement among administrators arises over how the improvements should be made. Total Quality Management (TQM) is a powerful tool in bringing about change and should be considered as an effective alternative in improvement efforts. The TQM approach is designed to address…

This is one of a series of reports based on an ongoing reality test of systemic evaluation for instructional decision making. This feasibility study is being carried out by the Center for the Study of Evaluation with the Laboratory in School and Community Relations at a suburban Los Angeles high school (called Site A). Viewing a school as a…

The General Accounting Office (GAO) reviewed the performance measurement system of the Department of Labor's (DOL's) Veterans Employment and Training Service (VETS), which administers programs and activities designed to help veterans obtain employment and training assistance. The GAO review focused on the following items: VETS' proposed…