The Associated Medical Schools of New York consortium has established a multifaceted, statewide effort aimed at increasing the pool of qualified minority applicants. The programs include academic enrichment for precollege and college students, recruitment conferences, and a program to attract minority students to residency training in New York.…

The current status of college savings and tuition prepayment plans is examined, and the advantages and disadvantages of state and national program options are reviewed. The financial aid community's ability to support a national savings plan is discussed. (Author/MSE)

Describes the lack of education of Black prison inmates. Discusses relative benefits and costs of educational programs to inmates and citizens. Provides seven examples of successful state-run programs and comments on the future possibilities for laws requiring educational programs for all inmates. (JS)

An evolved form of the Edwards and Beckworth (1989) model for probability selection for Scholastic Achievement Test takers using truncated normal distributions is presented. It is shown that the arguments of Holland and Wainer are not sufficient to reject this model. (SLD)

Analysis of a national study of state-operated institutional care for mentally retarded persons is presented. Among findings are dramatic escalation in resident cost, primarily a result of declining institutional census with stable staffing levels. Econometric projections for the year 2000 are offered. (Author/DB)

This review examines factors impacting on substantiation rates for central registries of child abuse and neglect cases. Technical factors were not found to affect substantiation rates, though certain legal factors were somewhat associated with lower substantiation rates. The use of risk assessment models is recommended to improve rates without…

This 10-year followup to an S. M. Davidson and others (1984) study surveyed all 50 states and the District of Columbia to determine the composition and role of state Medicare program Medical Care Advisory Committees (MCACs). Recommendations are given to enable MCACs to be more useful in policy development. (SLD)

Describes the development, beginning in 1988, of Vermont's portfolio-based writing assessment program, pointing out the inevitable tension in assessment programs between the need for measurement and a wish for professional development that leads to improved instruction. (SR)

Includes "Community Education (CE) Development in the States" (Clark, Zemlo); "State of the States" (Clark, Zemlo); "In Support of State-Level CE Development" (Decker, Romney); "CE in Florida" (Hanley, Robinson); ""CE in Kentucky" (Christenson, Whitus); "CE in Minnesota" (Kerns,…

Implementation of the Illinois Plan for Industrial Technology Education was assessed through interviews with 117 teachers. The assessment model (based on Stufflebeam's Context, Input, Process, Product) blended qualitative and quantitative information. Six key dimensions of change were identified, and the Transition Assessment Inventory proved…

Narrates an interview with Kenneth Ashworth, the recently retired commissioner of higher education in Texas, regarding his role in shaping the state's developmental-education programs. States that Ashworth was instrumental in starting the Texas Academic Skills Program, a statewide, basic-skills assessment program. Addresses such issues as funding…

Idaho has improved its historically poor career and technical education programs by changing priorities and increasing state support. A large grant from the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation is being used to develop professional-technical academies and to train career and technical teachers. (JOW)

The two articles in this special section, combined with two previous articles, discuss the use of portfolios in large-scale assessment. Ten years ago, there was great interest in portfolio assessment in state testing programs, but no large-scale program relies on portfolios at the present time. These articles continue to consider their uses. (SLD)

Describes the many causes of pressure to change large-scale assessment in the United States and suggests that the largest factor facilitating change will be technological, especially the use of the Internet. The Internet will help revolutionize the business and substance of large-scale assessment. (SLD)

Describes how delivering on the promises of broad-based merit scholarships has been neither easy nor cheap. Problems with such programs, which offer scholarship money to in-state students who meet modest academic requirements, include skyrocketing costs, intense popularity with the public which makes change difficult, legal challenges, and many…