The Reaching Success through Involvement process requires influential adult school members and student leaders to form an improvement-minded community of learners. The process helps group leaders develop leadership and learning skills, create high-quality cultures, and promote other learning groups. A study of 17 participating schools showed…

Highlights best practices in teacher education, focusing on several University of Maryland Baltimore County programs that have in common an emphasis on: facilitating outstanding achievement (especially among minority students); encouraging service learning and hands-on experiences; promoting reflection; conducting continuous self-evaluation and…

Reviews reasons for, history of, and exceptions to open meeting (sunshine) acts and considers arguments by the Michigan Supreme Court in its ruling supporting a university's right to privacy in its presidential search. Concludes that in contrast to the court's argument, universities do not require the freedom to employ closed searches and state…

This article provides a description and an analysis of how the U.S. federal courts have interpreted the least restrictive environment (LRE) clause in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). It charts the early evolution of judicial interpretation before reviewing cases involving the placement of children with deafness. (Contains…

Delineates observations about the experiences of youth and how well they are being prepared for adulthood in the twenty-first century in the following areas: adolescent life stage; family; peer relationships; health and well-being; education and employment; civic engagement, government, and inter-group relations; media and information technology;…

Using Swindler's settled discourse theory, examined 12 women superintendents' discourse to determine whether patterns in their talk about work experiences contain events or episodes of inequality. Five topics emerged: power, silence, style, responsibility, and people. Each was analyzed to discover how women treated such experiences in their…

A learning technologies director explains lessons gleaned from his school's strategic efforts to create a districtwide technology plan. The plan required an upfront vision, creative teamwork, facilitative leadership, instructional support, and patience. A sidebar details plans for incorporating assistive technologies for special-needs learners.…

For 5 years, the New York Partnership for Statewide Systems Change has cooperated with 14 public high schools planning inclusive programs. The program involves one general-education structure with supportive services, appropriate scheduling and grouping practices, adult collaboration and professional development, and revised assessment/grading…

Examined attitudes toward family obligations in American tenth and twelfth graders from Filipino, Chinese, Mexican, Central and South American, and European backgrounds. Found that even within a society emphasizing adolescent autonomy and independence, youths from families with collectivistic traditions retain their parents' familial values and…

This paper reviews the 45 due process hearings and court cases between 1993 and 1998 concerning parental requests for school districts to provide and/or fund the Lovaas treatment program for their young children with autism. It reviews previous legislative and legal definitions of a free appropriate public education and considers implications of…

This article analyzes the 1999 Supreme Court decision, Cedar Rapids Community School District v. Garret F., which affirmed the school district's responsibility to provide medical services to a student with disabilities. It traces the legal history of the issue, examines lines of case law underlying the decision, and discusses the likely…

Explores legal liability of supervisors to supervisees beyond the principles of respondeat superior or vicarious liability. Defines four widely accepted elements of malpractice. Suggests potential supervisors recognize the risks involved in professional practice and practice risk management in supervision, much as they do in therapy with their…

Leaders bring to new jobs their values and vision, the authority of their position, and their reputation and accomplishments. How new superintendents conduct themselves during the critical entry/"honeymoon" phase affects their subsequent working relationships and leadership effectiveness. Structured interviews with staff, parents, and…

Identifies factors contributing to urban schools' failure, including bureaucratic decision-making processes; outmoded, poorly maintained, and improperly designed facilities; responsibility overload; a new student population comprising immigrants, African-Americans, and the poor; rising security costs; inadequate staffing; and lack of political…

States that for faculty to make effective referrals to academic support programs, they should be knowledgeable about services and describe them to students in their classes early in the term, they must endorse the use of the service and repeatedly encourage students to attend, and they must make their referrals personal. (VWC)