On June 25 and 26, 2018, 211 STEM education leaders, 176 of whom were representatives from the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and several tribal territories, gathered in Washington, D.C. for the first State-Federal STEM Summit. On Day 2 of the Summit, these…

The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) has ushered in a new era of flexibility for state policies and practices related to low-performing schools. Will the states make changes? What aspects of change will need additional support? This descriptive, mixed methods study uses survey data from turnaround leaders in all 50 states and an extant document…

This project examined recent changes to Michigan's Quality Rating and Improvement System (QRIS). A QRIS is a way to assess, communicate, and improve the quality of early childhood education (ECE) programs. The goals of the study were to document how Michigan's original QRIS functioned and to understand how changes to the QRIS calculation system…

This paper describes a major initiative in the Commonwealth of Kentucky to develop a statewide, standards-based, student report card for reporting the learning progress of individual students at all grade levels (K-12). Led by a team of researchers with expertise in grading and reporting, 36 educators from three diverse school districts created…

Roles and responsibilities for educational reform in Hawaii have involved several levels of planning and organizational involvement. A draft document entitled "Our Vision of Excellence" has been compiled by the State Department of Education. Following review by educators, parents, community leaders, and other concerned agencies, a…

The author describes the development and current status of statewide efforts to establish formalized environmental education planning. To provide a "data base," an inventory of environmental education resources in the State was compiled and distributed. The compendium covered K-12 education, higher education, community groups,…

This paper outlines the preparations necessary for state psychological associations to make a timely, well-coordinated, and successful mental health response to disaster or trauma. It is suggested that early planning, recruiting, training, connecting with an authorized disaster organization, forming a mental health coalition, organizing…

Much energy has been invested into identifying educational goals at the national, state, and local levels. When a plethora of goals exist, the chances of all goals being achieved decreases as economic and human resources are not channeled toward a narrowly defined end. This paper presents findings of a study that explored the alignment of federal…

The need for goals in postsecondary and higher education is discussed. It is suggested that the development of statewide goals can serve as a means of making postsecondary education accountable to the public without resort to increased control and regulation. The process being used in Georgia to develop statewide goals for postsecondary education,…

Established by NIE in June 1975, the State Dissemination Grants Program provides resources to state education agencies to develop comprehensive and generalized dissemination capacity, which is defined as the leadership and service capability to provide information and technical assistance in the solution of problems identified by the dissemination…

This speech reviews what Illinois has done in terms of public financial support for the private sector, what the Illinois Board of Higher Education recommends be done in the near future, and the issues that must be resolved. Illinois was one of the pioneer states in extending financial aid to private higher education institutions, beginning with…

A review is presented of recent educational changes affecting or taking place in Texas, including discussion regarding improved testing measures and results, remedial instruction, programs for students with special needs, grading and promotion standards for students, teacher salaries, teaching conditions, and funding. (CB)

Describes the use of geographic information systems (GIS) to define, map, and measure the information infrastructure of South Carolina, and proposes a procedure for identifying the quality of information infrastructures. Highlights include socioeconomic factors, the library infrastructure, bookstores and mass media, and examples of maps.…

In 1980, the Sioux Falls Area Press Association in South Dakota attempted to devise a political debate procedure and format that would serve both the candidates and the public. Involving the candidates for the first and second district congressional races and for the United States senate, the televised debates, entitled "Election 80,"…

This collection of papers commemorates the 10-year anniversary of Ball State University's designation as a state university of Indiana. The papers discuss: higher education in national perspective, the dimensions and relationship of a statewide system of postsecondary education, and the individual characteristics and aspirations of an institution…