Community social capital is an important mechanism for collective efficacy and civic engagement to address problems of public concern. Using panel data from four periods spanning nearly 20 years, this study investigated the effects of a federal policy supporting service-learning in higher education on community social capital as measured by an…

In May 2016, Government funding of £80 million was awarded to establish five employer-led National Colleges in key growth sectors -- Creative and Cultural (NCCI), Digital Skills (Ada), Nuclear (NCfN), High Speed Rail (NCHSR) and Oil and Gas. This was alongside substantial investment from Local Authorities (LAs), Local Enterprise Partnerships…

Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) invited 10 districts to participate in a community of practice designed to increase understanding of how to braid and blend federal funds. District teams composed of principals, superintendents, business managers, and other district leaders participated in four 90-minute virtual sessions. The purpose of…

Part I summarizes key topics of federal education policy articulating accountability requirements for state education agencies (SEAs) and local education agencies (LEAs, or school districts). In that section we describe major goals of the legislation and which components are the same or changed in the federal law. The findings are grouped into…

Impact evaluation plays a critical role in determining whether federally funded research programs in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics are wise investments. This paper develops quantitative methods for program evaluation and applies this approach to a flagship National Science Foundation-funded education research program, Research…

The author discusses the origins and relevant changes that have occurred in Mexican higher education, regarding institutional and academic programs assessment and evaluation.

Administered by the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP), in partnership with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the Drug Free Communities Support Program (DFC) is a federal grant program that provides funding to community-based coalitions that organize to prevent youth substance use. Since the…

The Oklahoma Early Childhood Program uses public and private funds to enhance and expand high quality early care and education opportunities for children birth through age 3. The George Kaiser Family Foundation initiated the pilot in 2006 by matching state general revenue with private donations. Since that time, other private funders and providers…

The Illinois Child Care Collaboration Program promotes collaboration between child care and other early care and education providers, including Early Head Start (EHS), by creating policies to ease blending of funds to extend the day or year of existing services. While no funding is provided through the initiative, participating programs may take…

Implementing educational reform requires partnerships, and university-school collaborations in the form of investigative and experimental projects can aim to determine the practicalities of reform. However, there are funded projects that do not achieve intended outcomes. In the context of a new reform initiative in education, namely, science,…

Since 1999, Nebraska's Early Head Start Infant/Toddler Quality Initiative has supported Early Head Start (EHS) and community child care partnerships to improve the quality and professionalism of infant and toddler care. EHS programs apply to receive funding to establish partnerships with center-based or home-based child care.The initiative has…

Maine has two initiatives that build on Early Head Start (EHS). The first initiative, Fund for a Healthy Maine, has since 2001 provided tobacco settlement money to existing Head Start and EHS programs to expand the number of children who receive full-day, full-year services. Local programs have the option of using these funds for EHS, depending on…

This study is an exploratory examination of the projected sustainability of more than 100 projects funded by the Australian government. Using data collected by the body that evaluated the projects and data from a government database, it examines the predictors of various forms of sustainability. Findings show that some two thirds of the project…

In this article, the authors explore contexts that have shaped the federal program for personnel preparation in special education. A brief review is provided of the historical, political, and policy considerations that influenced the directions, implementation, and impacts of the federal personnel preparation program funding at particular points…

The authors provide an overview of the Cooperative Extension System and its program evaluation challenges. Part of the historic land-grant system, Extension exists in all states and territories of the United States and is funded through federal, state, and local (usually county) appropriations, as well as competitive grants and other sources.…