Bilingual education has been a political topic in the U.S. for years but lacks concrete legislation about compulsory learning to promote biliteracy and bilingualism. The Seal of Biliteracy (SoBL) is an optional award for public high school seniors demonstrating mastery in English and an additional language. Many changes must be made to ensure that…

Getting a head start on college coursework in high school has become an even more important goal for high school students in recent years, due in part to the rising costs of obtaining traditional four-year college degrees coupled with the disruptions in learning for high school and college students due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now more than ever,…

The National Center on Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) provides professional development and technical assistance to more than 27,000 schools nationwide (OSEP Technical Assistance Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports, 2021). Although much has been documented on the impact of Tier I PBIS implementation with…

Chronic absenteeism is a critical issue that has been linked to many adverse student outcomes. The current study focuses on improving a key system already in place in many school districts--early warning systems (EWSs)--in order to decrease chronic absenteeism in students' earliest schooling years. Using a demographically diverse population of…

Introduction: In the USA, syringe services programmes (SSPs) provide a range of harm reduction services and have numerous benefits for communities. However, stigma, misconceptions about SSPs and changing policies/legislation remain a challenge to effective implementation. This study reviews the implementation of two digital interventions,…

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) American Apprenticeship Initiative (AAI) funded 46 grantees across the country to expand registered apprenticeship into new sectors, such as healthcare, and to populations historically underrepresented in apprenticeships. DOL commissioned an evaluation of the AAI grants to build evidence about the effectiveness…

"Pathways to Implementation" highlights innovative strategies and effective models in career pathways policy, implementation, and programming, as well as challenges states encounter in this work. This seven-part series addresses the key elements of Bellwether's framework for career pathways policy implementation. Each brief defines the…

This study evaluates the Programming the Acceleration of Computing Education (PACE) Framework for Computer Science (CS) Systems Change, developed to promote equitable access to CS education for middle school students. Funded by an Education Innovation and Research (EIR) Early-Phase Grant, the intervention aimed to increase student understanding,…

Partnerships between schools and out-of-school organizations (museums, zoos, nature centers, etc.) have been shown to improve the educational experiences for both students and teachers. In this article, we report on the experiences we have documented as a nature center through our active involvement in school partnerships. Our partnerships with…

The Massachusetts Early Childhood Support Organization (ECSO) initiative seeks to improve the quality of early education programs (EEPs) by supporting leaders to strengthen their organizational climate, provide job-embedded professional learning opportunities for educators, support the use of instructional curriculum and child assessments in their…

LearnPlatform by Instructure conducted this quasi-experimental study, evaluating the impact of the Breathe For Change Mindfulness, Social-Emotional Learning (SEL), and Yoga Teacher Training on K-12 student attendance and chronic absenteeism during the 2023-24 school year. The study included 172 educators and 955 students from a mid-size public…

"Pathways to Implementation" highlights innovative strategies and effective models in career pathways policy, implementation, and programming, as well as challenges states encounter in this work. This seven-part series addresses the key elements of Bellwether's framework for career pathways policy implementation. Each brief defines the…

The PBIS Framework has demonstrated effectiveness in supporting schools in improving various prosocial outcomes including improved social, emotional, and behavioral skills; increased academic outcomes and attendance; decreased exclusionary discipline (e.g., office referrals, suspensions); and reduced reports of bullying and substance abuse. In…

The Massachusetts Multi-City Young Children's System of Care Project was a federally funded program to provide integrated early childhood mental health (ECMH) services in primary care for families of very young children (birth-six years old) with Serious Emotional Disturbances across three cities in Massachusetts, U.S.A. This study describes…

With an increase in the number of enrichment options available in out-of-school time (OST), young people can explore topics generally passed over in a typical school day. Parent perception of afterschool programming is beginning to shift from a simple necessity of the work week to a conscious choice about the daily experiences of their children.…