Research conducted by the General Accounting Office (GAO) indicates that the current system of multiple employment training programs requires major overhaul to reduce costs, streamline the bureaucracy, and improve results. The current system of 163 different federal employment training programs wastes resources and confuses and frustrates clients,…

School board members are entrusted by taxpayers to establish and maintain quality in their school systems. Unfortunately, most board members lack the experience or training necessary to face a wide range of new and daunting challenges. This book was designed to help school administrators and board members understand the principles of Total Quality…

This report presents the findings of an investigation into the major issues and possible responses to recent changes in college student financial aid. An executive summary reports that student financial aid is of urgent concern to institutions, policymakers and the nation and that a long term dialogue on the role, impact, and importance of…

This paper summarizes results of a hearing by the Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance in Atlanta, Georgia, on the delivery and disposition of higher education student financial assistance funds. Seventeen individuals offered testimony. They included representatives of guarantee agencies, the lending community, the financial aid…

This report discusses the recent Governor's Conference, as well as the activities of Nevada's library community in addressing the national conference theme of literacy, productivity, and democracy in library and information services. Briefly highlighted are the discussion papers presented at the conference; the forums that addressed key library…

This policy brief presents a discussion of what needs to be done to empower, attract, and retain good teachers. Consistent with educational reform efforts, the Southeastern Regional Vision for Education (SERVE) invited the 1992 and 1993 Outstanding Teachers of the Year from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina…

In a study of integration of vocational and academic education in Texas, administrators of a stratified random sample of 112 school districts in the state were surveyed, and 65% responded. Steps toward integration were being taken in 84% of the districts; however, only four districts have implemented integration plans described as comprehensive.…

In 1987, the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) initiated a Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Education Project to enhance the capacity of state education agencies to assist local education agencies and schools in implementing effective HIV education within a framework of a comprehensive school health program. This publication, the…

In 1990-91, the Rockville Campus (RC) of Montgomery College (MC) in Maryland, revised its English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) program to make it more responsive to student needs and begin offering ESL courses for institutional credit in fall 1991. Faculty at MC's Takoma Park Campus (TPC), however, objected to RC's proposed changes, particularly to…

This policy brief addresses the current and future impact of substance abuse by pregnant women on their infants and children. It provides data on incidence estimates in 1985, 1989, 1995, and 2000. Findings of studies in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina provide documentation for varying incidence estimates.…

This working paper examines key policy issues in the implementation of Australia's User Choice policy regarding allocating public funds for vocational education and training (VET). Part 1 explains the process used to obtain stakeholders regarding the User Choice policy, the administrative arrangements required to support it, and issues that must…

The University of Wisconsin-Madison began to offer computer conferencing as a service to the campus for the fall 1995 semester. The university's End User Computing Group developed a set of policies to address such questions as: who is eligible to use the service; the Division of Information Technology's responsibilities; customer responsibilities;…

To address problems in public education for majority and minority ethnic groups in Central and Eastern Europe, Minority Rights Group International and the Inter Ethnic Initiative for Human Rights Foundation organized a skills exchange workshop in Sofia, Bulgaria in November 1997. Representatives from Bulgaria, Hungary, Poland, Romania, and Slovkia…

Initiated by the government of the Netherlands and UNESCO, the European Policy Conference on Early Childhood Education focused on early childhood policy issues with special reference to the social integration of children and families at risk. The conference was organized around three themes including quality, accessibility and going-to-scale. This…

The relationships among factors reported on a set of report cards developed for local school districts in Tennessee were studied. The analysis offers information about how selected factors relate to student outcome. Each year, Tennessee's State Board of Education produces a report card on each school district using data provided by the district…