In 2006 and 2007, the U.S. Department of Education awarded Teacher Incentive Fund (TIF) grants for the development of innovative strategies for teacher compensation. New Leaders for New Schools (NLNS), with five partner organizations--Memphis City Schools (MCS), the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS), Denver Public Schools, Prince…

This report provides an overview of the federal stimulus--also known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA)--and where California stands in relation to the requirements. It also looks at the thinking behind the four reform areas (teacher and administrator effectiveness; data systems; standards; and turning around low-performing…

Reading First, the largest and most ambitious beginning reading initiative funded by the United States Department of Education, is entering its sixth and final year in Georgia. The author currently serves as a coordinator for the project as well as serve as a Regional Consultant to six schools near my home in South Georgia. She is one of fourteen…

This study examined approximately 6,500 Florida students' reading and mathematics performance when taught by a sample of teachers who obtained their teaching credentials through the Troops to Teachers program. Results indicated that students served by Troops teachers performed about equally well in reading and achieved a small but statistically…

A Washington research group is raising questions about the wisdom of the U.S. Department of Education's favored strategies for turning around the lowest-performing schools with stimulus funding, saying that its research shows that similar federal approaches to school restructuring have not been effective. The questions raised by the new study were…

Preschool teachers face increasing pressure to ensure that "all" children acquire the competencies they need to start on the path to becoming successful readers in the early grades, including children who may enter preschool with exceptionally weak skills. This article describes efforts to provide individually tailored supports to relatively…

This study examines the short- and long-term impact of AmeriCorps participation on members' civic engagement, education, employment, and life skills. The analysis compares changes in the attitudes and behaviors of participants over time to those of individuals not enrolled in AmeriCorps, controlling for interest in national and community service,…

Booksharing is often considered one of the most important activities parents can do to promote young children's early literacy skills. However, there is relatively little research on the style and nature of booksharing in Latino homes. This study examined the relation between maternal booksharing styles and low-income Latino children's subsequent…

This article reports the results of a study analyzing the interaction of administrative genres and stakeholder beliefs in the Mexican Wolf Blue Range Reintroduction Project (MWBRRP) in New Mexico and Arizona. The author examines this interaction through an analysis of a set of 944 recorded public comments (with administrative responses) concerning…

The 2007-2008 school year marked the first year Florida's Title I schools that did not made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for five consecutive years entered into restructuring as mandated by the "No Child Left Behind Act" of 2001. My study examines the perceptions of teacher entering into their first year of school restructuring due to…

This paper offers a list of questions and corresponding answers about the 4-year cohort graduation rate. Answers to the following questions are presented: (1) Why don't GED (General Educational Development) students count as graduates?; (2) How does a district code students who have moved out of state? How should a district code a student who…

The value of professional development continues to be emphasized on educational and governmental levels. Even as this study was being conducted, the U.S. Department of Education launched a $4.35 billion dollar grant that includes improving teacher effectiveness as a core component of the grant's purpose…

Expanding schooling options for children in low performing schools is one of the major principles of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) policy, representing two reform initiatives for public education school improvement that have dominated the conversations among public education policymakers, test-based accountability and school choice. Given their…

This paper provides information about Rhode Island's New England Common Assessments Program (NCAP), a comprehensive test. Its purpose is to measure each student's overall proficiency for graduation in the six core academic areas. In 2008, the Board of Regents in Rhode Island established new regulations for high school diplomas. Beginning with the…

These tables show undergraduate Stafford loan borrowing rates and average Stafford loan amounts from 1989-90 to 2007-08, using data from six separate administrations of the National Postsecondary Student Aid Study (NPSAS): NPSAS:90, NPSAS:93, NPSAS:96, NPSAS:2000, NPSAS:04, and NPSAS:08. The estimates that appear in these tables reflect the newly…