Several state boards of education have adopted graduate profiles or portraits to better define the skills and knowledge students should master before they graduate high school. This report discusses the graduate profiles developed by the following states: South Carolina, Utah, Virginia, and Washington. While their entry points and approaches to…

Since its inception, agricultural education has been instrumental in equipping secondary graduates with the necessary skills to be successful in their future career endeavors. While this has remained a priority over time, many employers claim that secondary graduates do not possess the necessary skills to be successful in the workforce. This study…

Since 2001, Congress has debated legislation that would offer a pathway to legal status for eligible unauthorized immigrants who arrived in the United States as children. And in 2012, President Barack Obama launched the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program that offers work authorization and relief from deportation for some such…

Career and technical education (CTE) incorporates occupational skills, workforce readiness skills, and credentials that make high school graduates better prepared for the workforce. Students who complete CTE programs of study have higher employment rates after high school graduation and often go on to postsecondary education. For those who do not…

When students with the capacity to succeed in a 4-year college do not take a college admission test, this represents a potential loss of opportunity for students and colleges alike. However, the costs of testing--both pecuniary and nonpecuniary--may exceed the benefits for students who lack the interest in or qualifications for college attendance.…

Federal requirements stipulate that states and local education agencies annually calculate and report an Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate, disaggregated by student group. The ACGR includes all students who graduate from high school in four years with a regular high school diploma, plus all students with the most significant cognitive disabilities…

In Virginia, all high school students can earn either a Standard diploma or an Advanced Studies diploma, the latter being a college preparatory diploma. Starting in 2017, the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) began requiring students graduating with the Standard diploma to earn a career and technical education (CTE) credential to encourage…

The "Forum Guide to Exit Codes" provides an updated taxonomy for exit codes, information on best practices related to exit coding, and case studies that highlight different education agencies' approaches to and experiences with exit coding. In 2006, the Forum addressed the need for a voluntary, common format for tracking data about when…

"The College Payoff: More Education Doesn't Always Mean More Earnings" explores how lifetime earnings vary by education level, field of study, occupation, industry, gender, race and ethnicity, and location. The lifetime earnings of a full-time full-year worker with a high school diploma are $1.6 million, while workers with an associate's…

Researchers, policymakers and educators are increasingly focused on the accurate identification, assessment, and referral of English learners (ELs) with disabilities, stemming in part from both the under- and over-identification of ELs for special education services, as compared to non-ELs identified for these services. Appropriate decision making…

Of the nearly 100 different types of high school diplomas that are awarded across all fifty states and the District of Columbia, less than half prepare students for success in college and career. And while the national high school graduation rate is at an all-time high, the rate at which students earn these college- and career-ready (CCR) diplomas…

State policymakers are in a unique position to enable the innovations in education necessary to prepare students for a rapidly changing world. Working with 8,000 educators nationwide, the Aurora Institute identified the top 10 issues to address in state policy for transforming the K-12 education system: (1) Profile of a Graduate; (2) Innovation…

Education leaders in Virginia use early access to Algebra I as one method to provide students more time to take college preparatory courses in high school, thereby increasing students' likelihood of graduating prepared for college and careers. Yet, little data are available for these leaders to examine whether their approach is warranted. Members…

This document provides the two appendixes that accompany the full report, "Algebra I and College Preparatory Diploma Outcomes among Virginia Students Who Completed Algebra I in Grades 7-9." Appendix A, "Methods," details the data sources, study population, and analysis methods used in the study. Appendix B, "Supporting…

Education leaders in Virginia use early access to Algebra I as one method to increase students' likelihood of graduating from high school prepared for college and careers. This study used administrative data to calculate descriptive statistics on Algebra I outcomes and attainment of college preparatory diplomas among students by their grade 5 math…