The FNS Research Corner provides a continuing series to summarize recently completed and current research conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) in the area of child nutrition. Summaries of recently completed research projects and in-progress research are provided in this article.

This manuscript describes the development and testing of an Internet-based cost survey that was designed by the authors for the National Assembly on School-Based Health Care (NASBHC) to capture the costs of school-based health programs. The intent of the survey was twofold. First, the survey was designed to collect comprehensive data on costs in a…

Prime indicators for realistic short term/long term project goals are budgets and timetables. Concrets, identifiable objects are useful in separating eloquent rhetoric from actual promises. Similarly, an external evaluator should be able to separate proposals with intentional misrepresentation of funding and goals from those which need further…

The primary purpose of the project was to develop cost-effectiveness materials to be used in conducting locally directed secondary school vocational education program investigations. Based on a literature review, eight key elements in the cost-effectiveness system were identified and a conceptual model and data instruments for cost-effectiveness…

A handbook for participants of a workshop on bilingual program evaluation is presented as part of the Bilingual Evaluation Technical Assistance project. Workshop objectives are as follows: make a schedule for evaluation management tasks; create a staffing plan; prepare a budget appropriate for the particular bilingual evaluation; develop a plan…

This secondary level vocational administrator's manual is designed to increase awareness of cost-effectiveness analysis concepts, provide step-by-step procedures and analytical techniques for conducting a cost-effectiveness analysis study, and assist administrators in improving management skills by using appropriate information from the study in…

This report of the functioning of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), Title I, in New York City was prepared under contract with the Board of Education. The study is descriptive rather than evaluative and the major effort was focussed on collecting the data upon which further intensive analysis will be based. However, certain…

A leader's guide for conducting a workshop on managing bilingual program evaluations is presented as part of the Bilingual Evaluation Technical Assistance (BETA) project. After examining how to organize the workshop, the following aids are presented: a preworkshop preparation checklist, a sample room arrangement diagram, a workshop time schedule,…

The adequacy of the Department of Education's automated information system for the Guaranteed Student Loan Program was assessed. The review conducted by the U.S. General Accounting Office focused on the department's efforts and plans to correct system deficiencies, the reasonableness and propriety of major system costs incurred, and the…

A project was conducted to develop a cost-effectiveness model and data instruments to be utilized in the management of secondary vocational programs. Based upon reviewed literature, cost effectiveness analysis was conceptualized as an analytical technique and eight key elements were identified. The model that was then developed includes four major…

This document is intended to assist South Dakota schools in the development and implementation of Gifted Education Plans, and includes state laws and rules pertaining to gifted education, guidelines for reporting, and explanations of the necessary components of a district's written plan. A brief statement of philosophy addresses characteristics of…

The paper presents results of discussions during an 8-day workshop (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, December 1979) on monitoring and evaluation (M&E) of East Asian and Pacific rural development projects. Major workshop themes identified are managerial, technical, and institutional aspects of monitoring. The introduction discusses previous World Bank…

The study summarizes discussions and conclusions of the Regional Workshop on Monitoring and Evaluation of Rural Development Projects in East Africa (Nairobi, Kenya, April 1979), whose purpose was to share lessons learned from field experiences in managing information for rural development. An initial section summarizes information in papers…

Common factors among high-performing distance learning (DL) programs were examined through case studies at 9 further education colleges and 2 nonsector organizations in the United Kingdom and a backup survey of a sample of 50 distance learners at 5 of the colleges. The study methodology incorporated numerous principles of process benchmarking. The…

Florida's apprenticeship program was reviewed to assess its benefits and ability to meet state demands. The review was based on an analysis of the apprenticeship program's enrollment, costs, and course offerings and information about the employment and earning outcomes of program graduates. The review established that Florida's apprenticeship…