This postscript presents the implementation and evaluation of family and community based intervention programs for children and young people implemented in Norway. The Norwegian experiences and results illustrate how evidence-based programs developed in the U.S. have been transported across geographical and language borders, implemented…

Afterschool and competency-based learning are increasingly emerging as student-centered, supportive learning models to prepare students for college and career. This white paper explores the intersection and relationship between these two fields, recommends ideal policy environments for implementing successful programs, provides real-world…

Over the years, a number of interventions aimed at increasing student engagement and performance have been implemented in higher education. Some of these, labeled high-impact practices (HIPs), when done well, have led to documented evidence of student success. Two approaches that have been identified as HIPs--first-year seminars and learning…

This article describes the Community Grant Writing Project (CGWP), a flexible service-learning framework designed for use in writing-intensive courses. The CGWP incorporates best-practice recommendations from the service-learning literature and addresses recent challenges identified for successful service-learning partnerships. In the CGWP,…

The human brain develops rapidly in the first five years of life. High-quality early learning experiences can have a profound and lasting positive effect on young children during these years, setting the stage for success in kindergarten and beyond. This is especially true for young children with high needs who are from low-income families; who…

In January 2007, the Oregon State Board of Education mandated a new Oregon diploma that strengthened high school graduation requirements with the aim of improving student readiness for college and career. Among the major changes was a requirement that students demonstrate proficiency in nine "essential skills" that included the…

Although a growing body of research points to the critical need to foster reading, writing, speaking, and critical thinking skills for students in order to ensure their success in college, careers, and life, these efforts have tended to focus more on developing literacy skills in the early years, often ignoring secondary students. The outcome has…

This exploration into competency-based innovation at the school, district, and state levels suggests that competency-based pathways are a re-engineering of this nation's education system around learning--a re-engineering designed for success in which failure is no longer viable. This discussion draws on interviews and site visits with innovators…

Interest is growing in planning and implementing new systems of holding child and family services accountable for results. The Results-Based Accountability (RBA) Project at the Harvard Family Research Project (HFRP) has supported and built upon recent state efforts to develop these new accountability systems for child and family services. The RBA…

Potential uses of a central registry/clearinghouse approach in the Child Support Enforcement Program (CSEP) are described in this publication. The CSEP was established in 1975 under Title IV-D of the Social Security Act in an effort to reduce federal monies spent supporting dependent children not receiving financial assistance from absent parents.…

The Schools Uniting Neighborhoods (SUN) Community Schools Initiative is a community-driven model that allows each school community to design the programs that fit neighborhood needs, while working toward core goals that stretch across all SUN Community Schools. In this article, the author describes the history of SUN Community Schools and its core…

This report is based on a review of literature, statistical data, and a range of community-based programs for juvenile offenders, studied during the past 5 years by the National Governors' Association. The report provides an overview of innovative approaches to program design and coordination of services for delinquent youth. It describes several…

This handbook contains supportive materials related to administering, planning, and evaluating public kindergarten programs. The main contents of the handbook include information on administering a public kindergarten and planning the kindergarten curriculum. The foreword stresses that the curriculum section is not a complete design but is…

Oregon offers this guide to assist educators in establishing career education programs in small schools, K-12. Section 1 gives suggestions for promoting awareness, exploration, and preparation and lists goals for incorporating career educational concepts into all areas of the curriculum. Emphasis is placed on vocational clusters and special…

The purpose of these two publications is to help Oregon school districts develop and implement health services programs for students in preschool through grade 12. Section 1 of the primary text provides an overview of the school health program in terms of the state standard for health services, development of a school health services program, and…