Implementation of ESA programs will not be easy. The ESA model is novel and foreign to most state education agencies, which have little to no experience with helping families purchase a wide variety of educational goods and services using government funds. Even if agencies had the relevant experience, ESA programs are complex, involving millions…

When the COVID-19 pandemic drove schools online in March 2020, state education leaders were left without access to data needed to understand how best to support students. The pandemic revealed the strengths and limitations of state education data systems while inspiring new strategies for collecting, reporting and using data. In 2021, DataSmith…

The Bachelor's of Applied Science in Information Technology is one of almost 40 bachelor's and associate degrees at Broward College that embed industry certifications into the course of study. Programs with embedded certifications allow students to earn two types of credentials: one issued by industry, the other by higher education. These new…

The purpose of this study was to assess the Florida Forest Service (FFS) employees' perceptions of the organization's external branding materials through an online survey. Employees had positive perceptions of the mission statement, including it being accurate and differentiating FFS from other organizations. Perceptions of the new change were…

This report offers state leaders key areas for action to continue progress in implementing evaluation systems, even as federal policies on teacher evaluation relax state requirements. The Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) offers its current best thinking for how state agencies can make the smartest use of funds, time and partners to refine…

This report is intended to help governors, legislators, department secretaries, and advocates find information on ways to strengthen the structure and function of their existing cabinets, or create a new cabinet. The survey in this report is the nation's only survey of state child and youth policy coordinating bodies. The biennial survey assesses…

Recent research has helped shift the national understanding of the opportunities presented by Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) fields, drawing attention to the large number of STEM jobs that require less than a Bachelor's degree. The data have also highlighted the critical importance of community colleges as a primary provider of…

"Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning 2016" marks the thirteenth consecutive year Evergreen has published its annual research of the K-12 education online learning market. The thirteen years of researching, writing and publishing this report represents a time of remarkable change. There has been a constant presence that has become the…

"Keeping Pace with K-12 Online Learning 2016" marks the thirteenth consecutive year Evergreen has published its annual research of the K-12 education online learning market. Throughout the past thirteen years there has been a constant presence that has become the backbone, supporting the growth and success of online learning--the array…

Despite concerns whether supermaximum security prisons violate human rights or prove effective, these facilities have proliferated in America over the past 25 years. This punishment--aimed at the "worst of the worst" inmates and involving 23-hr-per-day single-cell confinement with few privileges or services--has emerged despite little…

Race to the Top States offer a wide range of supports for local educational agency (LEA) implementation of one of four school intervention models. Some States allocate resources on a regional basis, while others coordinate resources at the State level. Certain States also use data tools to measure district needs, capacity and progress on key…

This article describes an Online Mentor Program (OMP) designed to support and facilitate mentorships among and between Florida Department of Health (FDOH) employees and USF College of Public Health students using a Web-based portal. The Florida Public Health Training Center (FPHTC) at the University of South Florida (USF) College of Public Health…

After two decades of major education reforms without seeing major gains for low-income students, state leadership is coming to the conclusion that there is something inherently wrong with America's K-12 system. States have called into question the time-based system built around the Carnegie unit and are now rapidly advancing an alternative. By…

This paper serves as the introduction to the State Children's Cabinets and Councils Series, a set of reports intended to capture and organize the decisions and experiences of more than 20 children's cabinets and councils and present them against an emerging set of expectations about what the public and policy makers could and should expect from…

This article explores the role of state education agencies in three states that have embarked on ambitious kindergarten through Grade 12 (K-12) virtual learning initiatives: Alabama, Florida, and Idaho. Subject to a rapidly changing environment influenced by factors beyond the jurisdiction of many state departments of education, the world of…