Since the early 2000s, accountability and evaluation have been regarded by policymakers as key mechanisms for "fixing" teacher education and by many teacher education leaders as vehicles for elevating the status of the profession and uniting a fragmented field. Although educational inequity has been an enduring and endemic problem during…

As publicly funded private school tuition systems have expanded, independent research has documented their negative outcomes. However, the prevalence of the programs continues to grow. This brief summarizes the research evidence about vouchers and identifies three areas of policy design that are especially important for student success and a…

High-quality career and technical education (CTE) and work-based learning opportunities can support students along a pathway to credential attainment, employment and upward economic mobility through intentional skill development and experiential learning. CTE concentration in high school can increase graduation rates while helping students build…

Dual enrollment is a complex policy issue and is increasingly of interest to state policymakers. Adequate data and data systems are critical to informing dual enrollment policy, yet the data at the federal level and many state data systems suffer from common challenges and lack the capacity to address dual enrollment policy. We review the…

Sometimes aided by state grants and guidance, Minnesota community partnerships are implementing Grow Your Own educator (GYO) programs to diversify the teacher workforce. The following is an examination of the growth and development of Minnesota GYO. While statewide grants fund some programs for either paraprofessionals or secondary students, the…

In this paper the authors examine the uses of teaching performance assessments (TPAs) as resources for learning, program evaluation, and improvement in teacher education. The authors begin by outlining their conceptual framing and related research questions about the uses of TPAs as resources for program evaluation and improvement. They describe…

State need-based financial aid programs are a key driver of college access and completion for lower-income students and racially marginalized students in California, most of whom attend public two- and four-year colleges and universities and come from families with annual incomes of less than $40,000. As the state's largest need-based financial…

The Illinois Educator Preparation Profiles (IEPP) system, housed at the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), provides public information on the performance of Illinois teacher preparation programs (TPPs) across the state. TPPs are scored on 11 indicators grouped into four domains--candidate selection and completion, knowledge and skills for…

Advances in the science of learning and development, along with the increasing demands of life and work in the 21st century, are raising expectations for schools and educators. Policy levers that affect the teacher workforce will play a key role in meeting these expectations. This report, one of a series of state policy studies produced by the…

Higher education makes important contributions to the betterment of society and to the lives of individuals. On a societal level, higher education supplies an educated citizenry and workforce. For individuals, higher education provides an opportunity for personal development, fulfillment, and economic mobility. States play a large role in helping…

The context for child care and early education (CCEE) changed rapidly in March 2020 as the global pandemic caused the closure of child care programs and schools, widespread job loss, and negative impacts on the broader economy and family life. Black and Latino families and families with lower income experienced disproportionately negative effects…

Large numbers of children of low income families in the United States arrive at kindergarten already far behind their more affluent peers on measures of school readiness. In the absence of any federal preschool policy and amidst alarm about this growing divide, universal prekindergarten (UPK) programs have been launched around the United States,…

This brief explores the lessons learned from the 2016 Parents and Children Thriving Together: Two-Generation State Policy Network (PACTT Network), a collaboration between the National Governors Association (NGA) and the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP). Through this initiative, five states explored how to use the two-generation approach to…

The Student Achievement Initiative (SAI) is the guiding framework for the Washington state community and technical college system's goals for student success. SAI emphasizes student momentum for college success by both building college readiness (such as basic skills gains and completion of precollege education, sometimes known as developmental…

With nearly 2 million college-educated immigrants and refugees in the United States unable to fully utilize their professional skills, better understanding of the elements of successful programs and policies that reduce the waste of advanced education and skills can benefit immigrants, their families, and the U.S. economy more generally. This…