The recent emergence of higher education into political and economic debate is reminiscent of the ongoing arguments about the appropriate provision of health care in the United States. Health care reform has been a political battle cry in the United States for years, and there are similar calls for reforms of higher education. These two industries…

Those advocating for effective management of the use of coastal areas and ecosystems have long aspired for an approach to governance that includes information systems with the capability to predict the end results of various courses of action, monitor the impacts of decisions and compare results with those predicted by computer models in order to…

Using "Measuring Up" data from 2000, 2002, 2004, and 2006, this study examines the extent to which the state performance grades, and changes in grades, are associated with the characteristics of each state and its arrangements for higher education governance and control. To what extent is each state's higher education performance a product of…

Over the last several months, the Committee on Education and the Workforce has been actively examining the current state of education in the nation. Everyone has listened to state and local leaders who are working to improve the quality of education the children receive. Through a series of hearings, they have heard stories of both challenges and…

Low rates of college completion have long been a major deficiency in the performance of American higher education. Over the last decade, the extent and importance of the problem was documented by the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education in the "Measuring Up" national and state report cards on higher education, and by…

As state-funded pre-K programs expand--more than 1 million children currently attend such programs--there is debate about the impact of state-funded pre-K on the quality and supply of child care for low-income working families. This policy brief looks at state policies and regulations regarding pre-K expansion that have the potential to positively…

Prosperous regions are educated regions. Ohio's relatively low share of residents with college degrees has concerned one governor after the other and proposals for managing Ohio's university system have differed substantially. The Kasich administration's higher education proposal, the "Enterprise University Plan for Ohio," is based on…

Prosperous regions are educated regions. Ohio's relatively low share of residents with college degrees has concerned one governor after the other and proposals for managing Ohio's university system have differed substantially. The Kasich administration's higher education proposal, the "Enterprise University Plan for Ohio," is based on…

Web 2.0 applications and mobile Internet devices have added new issues to the safety/access situation for schools. The purpose of this guide is to assist school districts in developing, rethinking, or revising Internet policies as a consequence of the emergence of Web 2.0, and the growing pervasiveness of smart phone use. The Consortium for School…

The characteristics of a state's accommodations policy may affect a state's decision about whether to develop an alternate assessment based on modified achievement standards (AA-MAS). A very restrictive accommodations policy may make it more difficult for some students to participate in the state's regular assessment used for accountability…

The National Assembly on School-Based Health Care (NASBHC) surveys state public health and Medicaid offices every three years to assess state-level public policies and activities that promote the growth and sustainability of school-based health services. The FY2011 survey found 18 states (see map below) reporting investments explicitly dedicated…

Prior to 2003, the Texas Legislature had the regulatory authority to set tuition rates, generally mandating that the same statutory and designated tuition rate be charged across the state. Tuition deregulation became effective September 1, 2003, and universities began increasing designated tuition in spring 2004. This article answers the following…

One of the most important trends in the early childhood field is the emergence of quality rating systems (QRS), or quality rating and improvement systems (QRIS), which are designed to assess, improve, and communicate the level of quality of early and school-age care programs. QRS came onto the scene in 1998 when Oklahoma enacted its "Reaching…

The legal source of schools' use of response to intervention (RTI) is a matter of federal and state special education laws, although its implementation is largely a matter of general education practice. The only mention of RTI is in the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and it is limited to identification of students with…

This Forum guide offers best practice suggestions on collecting and using student attendance data to improve performance. It includes a standard set of codes to make attendance data comparable across districts and states. There are real-life examples of how attendance information has been used by school districts. Chapter 1 discusses the…