Reports data from nationwide survey of state mental hospitals, providing exploratory look at patients with Alzheimer's disease and related disorders currently residing in state hospitals. Describes admissions trends, reasons for admission, and sources of referral. Discusses civil commitment of nursing home patients with dementing illnesses and…

One incentive state governments are offering industries to relocate is customized, state-supported training. A pool of skilled workers is a distinct competitive advantaged in attracting new businesses. (SK)

Alternative teacher certification evolved in many states as a response to projected teacher shortages, especially among minority teachers. Despite scant research on effectiveness, many are taking these alternative routes to teaching. (SK)

Outlines implications of educational reform initiatives for psychologists and discusses the roles they can play in the process of educational reform. The experience of Kentucky with its Kentucky Educational Reform Act serves as an example of the systemic education reform efforts many states are undertaking and illustrates the importance of…

Used data from a 50-state survey of policies, case studies, the 1993-94 Schools and Staffing Survey, and the National Assessment of Educational Progress to examine the ways in which teacher qualifications and other school inputs are related to student achievement across states. Findings suggest that policy investments in teacher quality may be…

The development of a core curriculum for secondary horticulture that New Hampshire teachers would actually use required grass-roots teacher input, independent and team writing, and feedback from employers and postsecondary instructors who would ultimately be affected by the new curriculum. (SK)

Studied the current state of school superintendent evaluation practices across the United States using state policy guides and materials. Findings show that 8 of 50 states do not have requirements or guidelines for superintendent evaluation and other states do not meet all the essential criteria for quality personnel evaluation. (SLD)

Discusses efforts by South Dakota, Oregon, Massachusetts, Kentucky, and Virginia to assess students using the Internet and computers. (PKP)

Describes the University of California's Small Farms Program, which aims to support the sustainability of small farms by providing small-scale farmers with state-of-the-art information, research, support networks, and technical assistance in technology adoption and decision making. Profiles four successful small farms that grow strawberries,…

Discusses the history of backup reference service in the state of New Jersey including the transition from regional backup service; describes the current statewide service; and considers future service possibilities in light of recent trends, including a decrease in the number of reference questions being received in libraries. (LRW)

This article describes the North Carolina Environmental Education (EE) Certification Program, which was established in 1997, and examines the certification experiences of the kindergarten through 12th grade teachers who have completed the program. Because this program is central to describing and assessing the status of K-12 environmental…

In an effort to assist family and consumer sciences teachers with the huge task of rewriting local curriculum to meet new state and national standards, a statewide collaborative effort was implemented in Washington. Teachers worked in groups around the state to create curriculum for frequently taught courses. While the groups worked together to…

The 1990s ushered in a new age in state financial support for college students, with the rise of broad-based merit scholarships. Starting in the South and spreading from there, the premise of the "new generation" of programs was simple--states should be in the business of rewarding student performance, retaining the state's "best…

This study inventoried state policies and regulations on and financial support for noncredit occupational programming offered by community colleges. Information collected from state- and community college-level administrators and Web-based searches is organized by a range of issues related to noncredit occupational programming and funding, such as…

Since the early 1990s, state governments have distributed billions of dollars in financial aid through merit-based college scholarships, most of which have no means tests. The model for most of these programs is Georgia's Helping Outstanding Pupils Educationally (HOPE) scholarship. Given the high correlation between precollege academic achievement…