This policy analysis examined the intersection of a statistical model and locus of control to recommend an accountability model that best upholds the criteria of equity, efficacy, and impact on student learning for Missouri schools. Using Eugene Bardach's eightfold path and informed by the quality education in schools framework, this analysis…

The tools charts are some of the most frequently visited resources on the NCII website. Furthermore, current and prior federal legislation and increasingly state legislation, emphasizes the use of educational programs, interventions, and assessments that have an evidence base supporting their effectiveness. State education agencies (SEAs) play an…

When the government chooses to cooperate with private organizations to provide public services, the Supreme Court has made clear that the First Amendment prohibits religious discrimination. Three cases--"Trinity Lutheran Church of Columbia, Inc. v. Comer" (2017), "Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue" (2020), and…

Teacher retention is an important factor to the school context. It governs the success of students and school organizational health. Without a healthy and committed teacher population, schools begin failing to serve the very people they aim to help. School districts and research have identified several factors that aid in teacher retention. These…

When pension benefits are not directly tied to contributions, some individuals may earn disproportionate returns on their retirement contributions. For instance, individuals who receive relatively larger late-career raises will receive disproportionately greater returns. For teachers, whose salaries are determined by salary schedules set by…

Anecdotal evidence points to the importance of school principals, but the limited existing research has neither provided consistent results nor indicated any set of essential characteristics of effective principals. This paper exploits extensive student-level panel data across six states to investigate both variations in principal performance and…

This mixed-method study sought to find specific factors influencing teachers in small, remote, rural school districts to continue teaching or to leave their teaching position. Additionally, this study sought to identify specific things district-level administrators could do influence teacher retention rates in small, remote, rural school…

We use administrative panel data from seven states covering nearly 3 million students to document and explore variation in "academic mobility," a term we use to describe the extent to which students' ranks in the distribution of academic performance change during their public schooling careers. On average, we show that student ranks are…

As the follow-up to an earlier examination of the frequency and outcomes trends of published court decisions under the IDEA for P-12 students, this updated analysis covers the 25-year period ending on December 31, 2022. The frequency trend for the most recent 10 years reversed the upward trajectory of the previous 15 years. The outcomes trend for…

Superintendents in Missouri public schools are revising their approach to strategic planning based on the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's new iteration of the Missouri School Improvement Program (MSIP 6). MSIP 6 requires superintendents and other district leaders to rethink the utility of their district's Comprehensive School…

Superintendents in Missouri public schools are revising their approach to strategic planning based on the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's new iteration of the Missouri School Improvement Program (MSIP 6). MSIP 6 requires superintendents and other district leaders to rethink the utility of their district's Comprehensive School…

Superintendents in Missouri public schools are revising their approach to strategic planning based on the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education's new iteration of the Missouri School Improvement Program (MSIP 6). MSIP 6 requires superintendents and other district leaders to rethink the utility of their district's Comprehensive School…

The purpose of this qualitative narrative phenomenological study was to discover how the structure of power in a school district led Missouri superintendents' leadership styles and feelings of effectiveness in their roles as district leaders. There were four power structures (Dominated, Factional, Sanctioning, Status Congruent) used to categorize…

We use close tax elections to estimate the impact of school district funding increases on operational spending and student outcomes across seven states. Districts with passing levies directed new revenue toward support services and instructor salaries but did not increase teacher staffing levels. These districts eventually realized gains in…

In March 2020, emergency school closings as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic initiated a sudden widespread use of virtual learning and brought new challenges that affected teaching and learning across multiple contexts. The complex change caused school district leaders to make plans to reinvent and reimagine schools and created a need for teacher…