On March 15, 2007, Santa Barbara residents were shocked when a baby-faced 15-year-old high school student was stabbed to death in the heart of the city's fashionable State Street shopping district. His assailant, just 14, was a member of a rival street gang and a student at the local junior high. "It was a wakeup call for the entire…

This technical brief describes updates to a database of dropout prevention programs and policies in 2006/07 created by the Regional Education Laboratory (REL) Northeast and Islands and described in the Issues & Answers report, "Piloting a searchable database of dropout prevention programs in nine low-income urban school districts in the…

Alternative education has become an integral program, in one form or another throughout most school districts in the United States. Alternative education is a very complex and controversial issue that is best understood through the stories of former alternative education students looking back on their lived experiences. Children in the alternative…

The Education for All Handicapped Children Act of 1975 established the basis for the mandate to provide all children with disabilities a Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE) and aligned the state and school districts ability to receive federal funding. The most recent legislation, Individuals with…

The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to evaluate the efficacy of 14 Mathematics, Science and Technology Teacher Preparation (MSTTP) academies located across the state of Texas. The aim of the academies was to increase the number of highly qualified mathematics, science and technology teachers, while also improving the quality of certified…

Information Resource Management-State University System of Florida (IRM-SUS) is the primary collector and provider of data concerning state universities that is used to make sound education policy decisions. The office provides technical assistance to those using the information, state and federal reporting support, those supplying information,…

Education Funders Research Initiative (EdFunders), a project of Philanthropy New York, is supported by a group of diverse funding organizations that have pursued an array of education reform strategies. EdFunders have come together to engage New Yorkers and focus leaders on new research into how to best prepare students for college and…

Though much research has been done on the efficacy of correctional education on reducing recidivism rates for prison inmates, there is little research on the effect that information about the efficacy of correctional education has on public opinion. This study examined whether providing additional information regarding the efficacy of correctional…

Over just the past decade, online learning at the K-12 level has grown from a novelty to a movement. Often using the authority and mechanism of state charters, and in league with home schoolers and other allies, private companies and some state entities are now providing full-time online schooling to a rapidly increasing number of students in the…

The "Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 (Perkins IV)" continues a longstanding federal investment in career and technical education (CTE) through grants to states and subgrants to local entities such as local education agencies (LEAs) and institutions of higher education (IHEs). As the fourth reauthorization of a…

In 2010, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the Kindergarten Readiness Act into law, which changed the kindergarten entry age so that children must turn 5 by September instead of December to enroll. The new grade level was put into place to promote school readiness for California's youngest learners. It also established a new grade…

This study sought to ascertain the specific motivations behind doctoral alumni giving. Most U.S. colleges and universities depend on alumni giving to supplement revenues from tuition and governmental support; however, relatively little alumni giving is generated from PhD graduates. The result is untapped revenue for doctoral-granting institutions.…

The purpose of this study was to assess how a comprehensive precollege intervention and developmental program among low-income high school students contributed to college enrollment outcomes measured in 2006. Our focus was on the Fifth Cohort of the Washington State Achievers (WSA) Program, which provides financial, academic, and college…

In 2007, New York City's Center for Economic Opportunity launched Opportunity NYC-Family Rewards, an experimental, privately funded, conditional cash transfer (CCT) program to help families break the cycle of poverty. Family Rewards provided payments to low-income families in six of the city's poorest communities for achieving specific goals…

The underrepresentation of women in technical fields is a widely acknowledged national problem, limiting both the raw size of the talent pool and the diversity of experiences and perspectives of those who will design solutions to key problems facing society. Empowering women to succeed in these fields is clearly one important component of any…