This study originated as an institutionally sponsored research residency conducted using utilization-focused evaluation (Patton, 2008) to investigate the nature of dispositional changes in candidates pursuing National Louis University's M.Ed. and Ed.S. degrees leading to educational leadership (EDL) state certification in one large urban school…

In 2010, as the result of a congressionally mandated study, the National Research Council (NRC) published the report "Preparing Teachers: Building Evidence for Sound Policy" (NRC, 2010). Reflecting the unprecedented attention to teacher quality that had emerged internationally in response to the exigencies of the "global knowledge…

National Career Development Association (NCDA) is excited to release the re-imagined 7th edition of their influential guide to career assessment. Re-conceptualized and renamed to "A Comprehensive Guide to Career Assessment," the "Guide" contains important information career counselors, educators, and practitioners will find…

Homeless youth in the United States is rapidly increasing with more children living in unstable or temporary environments. They may encounter difficulties meeting enrollment requirements, have poor attendance, low academic performance, and experience behavioral and emotional issues. The reauthorization of McKinney-Vento Act (MCKV) in 2002 was…

The purpose of the state education agency (SEA) is to focus the entire education system on helping students become capable in college and career in an increasingly complex world. One of the most vexing problems facing SEAs today is how to meet increasing demands for performance while adjusting to significant resource reductions. Meeting that…

This study was designed to examine the decision-making process for keeping or cutting the music program in one selected public school district. Lekbery School District, in the Detroit suburb of Lekbery, Michigan, had not made extreme cuts to the music program in over 10 years, nor had it specifically targeted the music program when budgets cuts…

The Urban Institute conducted an implementation and participant-outcomes evaluation of the Alaska Native Science & Engineering Program (ANSEP). ANSEP is a multi-stage initiative designed to prepare and support Alaska Native students from middle school through graduate school to succeed in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM)…

This paper presents results from interviews with 48 New York families of children with severe disabilities or chronic illnesses who were served by Sick Kids (need) Involved People (SKIP) of New York, Incorporated, a case management and advocacy service. The report is divided into sections on the families and their children, daily routine,…

The report describes evaluation activities of Minnesota's PACER (Parent Advocacy Coalition for Education Rights) Center's "Parents Helping Parents" Program and the "COUNT ME IN" Project. Section 1 focuses on "Parents Helping Parents," a program to make parents more effective advocates for their children and to…

The paper reports evaluation findings for 1982-83 of the PACER Center (Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights). Section I addresses PACER's parent training project incorporating five levels of activity: public information, general parent workshops, special workshops, advocacy training, and individual information and advocacy assistance.…

The report presents 1983-84 evaluative data on two projects sponsored by the PACER Center (the Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights): a statewide parent training program and a program designed to foster positive attitudes about handicapped persons. The parent training program is analyzed in terms of five levels of activity: public…

This document is comprised of two papers providing resources for after-school programs and additional information available from the Harvard Family Research Project (HFRP). The first paper, "Organizations in Out-of-School Time: An Introduction," reviews the national, state, and local organizations active in the field of out-of-school time, grouped…

Two institutes held on the east and west coasts, in March 1980, to develop and promote a leadership cadre to strengthen the arts in the education of the gifted are reviewed. The coalition of nine states (Arizona, California, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, Oklahoma, and Washington) and its purpose--to further the arts in…

Recommendations are offered to parents who wish to ensure an appropriate school placement for a deaf or hard of hearing child. A table lists 30 recommended standards to facilitate full inclusion and the associated actions that parents can take to ensure compliance with these standards. (DB)

This issue of "The Evaluation Exchange" describes new developments in evaluating advocacy and policy change efforts that attempt to inform or influence public policy at the local, state, or federal levels. Heather B. Weiss introduces the themes in this issue in "From the Director's Desk," examining how evaluation of advocacy…