For my dissertation, I was interested in examining the warnings about the preparedness of a new generation of students arriving on college campuses across the United States. For the past 12 years, these students have attended public schools under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, and the purpose of my study was to investigate the influence…

There is growing recognition that there are many career-enhancing pathways through four-year and community colleges. Nevertheless, many students leave high school without the skills needed to complete the most demanding academic pathways, nor realistic plans for completing alternative pathways that are far more likely to lead to desirable…

The quality of the teacher workforce in the United States is of considerable concern to education stakeholders and policymakers. Numerous studies show that student academic success depends in no small part on access to high-quality teachers. Many pundits point to the fact that in the United States, teachers tend not to be drawn from the top of the…

Currently school reform discourse encourages states to adopt college readiness standards. Meanwhile, federal and state accountability and related mandated reforms remain a policy concern. As such, it is important to examine the interplay between accountability and the establishment of a college-going culture in high "minority", high…

This dissertation consists of three chapters that examine the effects of school and students improvement interventions. The first chapter investigates whether, for whom, and under which conditions high school mathematics and science course graduation requirements (CGRs) affect student achievement and educational attainment. Drawing on data from…

The eight-year-old No Child Left Behind Act established for the first time a federal benchmark for student achievement. When the Obama Administration took office, the new president promised to stay true to the goal of NCLB while upgrading what critics have termed simplistic, "fill in a bubble" testing to create a more comprehensive…

When it comes to college readiness, a clear academic disparity exists between Latino students and their White and Asian peers. Not only are Latinos less likely to go to college, but also, once in college, their completion rate is much lower than any other group. Most research thus far has focused primarily on how the college environment can…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Global Competitiveness Report: United States's Slide Continues in Annual Ranking; Falls to Number Four; (2) New…

This article provides an introduction to mentor, near-peer, and peer support as they apply to promoting the academic and career success of young people with disabilities. The authors discuss specific benefits of mentoring and document access challenges encountered by students with disabilities. They present a case study of a successful…

Since 2002, the Center on Education Policy (CEP) has collected and reported data on state policies that require students to pass a state assessment in order to receive a high school diploma. The state policies associated with these assessments, also known as high school exit exams, have undergone a number of changes over the past ten years. For…

In its first hundred days, the Obama administration demonstrated a strong commitment to expanding access to higher education. The economic stimulus package, known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), increased funding for the Pell Grant program and over the next two years, the maximum award will grow to $5,550 in 2010-2011--the…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) "Educating Our Children": "Forbes" Taps Leaders in Business, Government, and Education for New…

The purpose of this study was to conduct a critical analysis of (1) the disparities between the SAT scores of Black and White students, and Hispanic and White students, for 2004 and 2005 and (2) what those disparities suggest about the effectiveness of the State of Virginia "SOL" program and the Federal "No Child Left Behind"…

America's secondary schools are failing far too many of their students. Policymakers and members of the education community generally agree that the problems in America's high schools have reached crisis proportions in recent years. Transforming schools and educating all students well requires thoughtful, coordinated, systemic change. To ensure…

"The Achiever" is published semi-monthly during the school year for parents and community leaders. Each issue contains news and information about school improvement in the United States. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) "Study Finds Majority of Sophomores Plan to Go to College"; (2) "Parent Support:…