Many welfare programs give greater benefits to unmarried individuals than to a married couple of otherwise identical income. The resulting marriage penalty discourages marriage and rewards single parenthood. Combined marriage penalties across federal and state welfare programs can reach tens of thousands of dollars per year for a given family. One…

While research has documented outcomes for students served by promise programs, few studies have considered the behavior of institutions themselves in the promise era. A new source of revenue combined with larger and more diverse cohorts is likely to motivate changes in spending and staffing--decisions instrumental to student access and success.…

This report presents results from a study of the Council of State Science Supervisors (CSSS). CSSS is a professional association for state science leaders that works to sustain and nurture a dynamic learning community and to empower its members to be effective and articulate advocates for quality science education at the local, state, and national…

This study reports on results of a survey of the Council of State Science Supervisors (CSSS). CSSS is a professional organization composed of supervisors of science education in State Education Agencies. The organization works to sustain and nurture a dynamic learning community that empowers its members to be effective and articulate advocates for…

For most of U.S. history, local communities were the primary arbiters of school quality. Beginning in the mid-twentieth century, states began assuming more and more control over school standards and outcomes. The question we seek to answer is whether and the extent to which a particular kind of local voice--the voice of education practitioners--is…

This report provides six mini-case studies of higher education policy reforms enacted in other states, exploring the important role that state policy leadership played in developing, promoting, and implementing these policies aimed at improving higher education outcomes, and discussing the relevance of each reform effort for California. This…

The lack of research on grading policies for handicapped students is pointed out, and results of a survey completed by 14 high schools in New Hampshire are summarized. Results reveal a variety of grading and graduation approaches including weighting grades or courses, developing a basic level curriculum geared for students having academic…

An investigation of smoking polices and smoking practices of residents and employees in 106 Massachusetts state-supported residential programs found that state-operated programs prohibited employees from smoking in residences and restricted residents who smoked to designated areas. One-third of vendor-operated agencies allowed residents and staff…

The report describes a Federally supported education and development program conducted during the 1973-74 fiscal year for members of the Michigan State Health Planning Advisory Council. The program sought to increase: (1) the council members' awareness of and insight into the comprehensive health planning process, (2) their knowledge of the health…

Fischer presented a methodological framework which combined empirical methods of data collection with interpretive and philosophical approaches to provide a useful model for studying mental health policy for children and adolescents. The levels of the method include: (1) study of cause-effect relationships; (2) phenomenological analysis to…

Examined how interest group struggles affect the formulation and implementation of a statewide long-term care system by using California's experience to illustrate the competition that can develop between senior citizens and disabled groups. (Author)

This 10-year followup to an S. M. Davidson and others (1984) study surveyed all 50 states and the District of Columbia to determine the composition and role of state Medicare program Medical Care Advisory Committees (MCACs). Recommendations are given to enable MCACs to be more useful in policy development. (SLD)

Evaluation of state advanced technology programs has begun in response to budget reviews. Issues include: (1) political and institutional contexts of evaluation; (2) technical issues concerning outcome specifications, use of process indicators, and dependence on self-reported assessments; and (3) use of evaluation in policy making. (TJH)

Because social policy making continues to devolve to the state level, social workers should understand how advocacy and policy making occur at that level. Interest groups active in the human services arena were surveyed and data were used to test a model of interest group effectiveness in four states. The independent variables were amount of…

State policies to encourage elementary teachers to teach for understanding and thinking are more comprehensive in California than in any other state. Based on in-depth interviews with eight curriculum and policy experts and an analysis of over 100 documents, this report describes efforts being advanced across six policy fronts: (1) curriculum…