This newsletter consists primarily of a legal review of the Supreme Court decision in "Witters v. Washington Department of Services for the Blind" (January 27, 1986), in which unusually clear guidelines are set forth for a constitutionally acceptable program of educational assistance that may include parents whose children attend…

The handbook is intended as a reference to rights of handicapped children and adults as defined by federal and state legislation. A section on education makes up a major portion of the document and includes information on the following areas: definition of handicapped children, early childhood, visual impairment, hearing impairment, physical or…

The Minnesota Indian Scholarship Program has grown tremendously since 1955 when three Indian students were given financial aid to attend college. This report provides a narrative and statistical history of the program and its activities with the state legislature, high school counselors, post secondary financial aids officers, tribal and…

This study represents an attempt to discern what responsibility the State should assume for regulating the education of the young, and what is the most defensible approach to fulfilling that responsibility. Analyses of this type could be timely, especially in the light of the spreading "alternative schools" movement; growing recognition among…

Testing programs enacted by the state legislature are changing and improving Florida's educational system in five areas: (1) setting standards for students; (2) making schools more accountable; (3) creating growth through competiton; (4) evaluating educational programs; and (5) assuring the competency of educators. (BS)

The Arkansas school finance equity suit titled "Lakeview vs. Tucker" was heard in 1994, and the state funding formula was declared unconstitutional. With much difficulty, a new law was passed to combine a number of previously categorical funds into the instructional budget. However, the constitutionality of the new law remains in…

This report presents an evaluation of Florida's College Reach-Out Program (CROP) and data on the 1992-93 cohort of institutions and students that the program serves. CROP is a state-wide program designed to increase the number of students successfully completing postsecondary education by providing academic enrichment opportunities and career…

In 1992-93, Louisiana had many achievements toward sex equity in vocational education. As state enrollment continued to grow, many efforts were undertaken to increase sex equity in vocational programs and to increase the occupational success of groups targeted by the Carl D. Perkins Applied Vocational and Technology Education Act. Among…

During 1999, the school choice movement succeeded in winning the enactment of an education tax credit program in Illinois and two new charter school laws, in addition to the sweeping (although subsequently overturned) school choice plan in Florida. Pennsylvania, New Mexico, and Texas also attempted to enact school choice legislation. In addition,…

This packet, which was developed as part of the Earned Income Credit Campaign 2000, contains an information booklet, a guide to outreach strategies, and accompanying materials to raise low-income workers' awareness of the Earned Income Credit (EIC) and other tax credits available to low-income taxpayers. The following are among the topics…

This report describes state educational standards in effect for the 1989-90 school year. It is the third report in a series that has tracked state standards since 1984-85. The first part of the report summarizes state educational standards for the 1989-90 school year and the changes that took place across the states between 1984-85 and 1989-90.…

Many service systems have fundamentally reoriented services by creating infrastructures that link resources from many parts of the community. This paper reviews 50 comprehensive community-based initiatives and describes their costs, results, and methods of finance. The overview defines comprehensive community-based initiatives and outlines…

The Alabama Commission on Higher Education (ACHE) recently established the "Technology Scholarship Program for Alabama Teachers" (TSPAT). Jacksonville State University (JSU) is one of the state institutions participating in the program, which was funded by Act 93-636 of the Alabama Legislature. The program addresses technological…

The requirement that home schooled students score at or above the 40th percentile on a nationally standardized test runs counter to several widely accepted principles of measurement. A single score should not be used alone in decision making, and there is no evidence that this is a valid use of the test. In addition, the 40th percentile is not an…

This document evaluates the present needs and future shape of the Oregon workforce and recommends strategies for both public and private sectors and for communication. The first section provides a background to the issues of the state's changing economy by describing global and national economic changes and recent state legislative responses, and…