The orientation of this report is that of identifying educational projects which can be considered clearly exemplary. The largest section consists of a 22-step procedure for validating the effectiveness of educational projects using existing evaluation data. It is not intended as a guide for conducting evaluations but rather for interpreting data…

The Beacons Initiative aimed to transform eight public schools (five middle schools and three high schools) into youth and family centers in low-income neighborhoods in San Francisco, California. Using a coalition of local partners and funding from public agencies and foundations, the centers served 7,500 youth and adults between July 1, 1999, and…

The Equipped for the Future (EFF) initiative asked adult learners to describe the knowledge and skills needed to fulfill their roles as parents, citizens, and workers and identified these four purposes: to provide access to information; to give voice to their ideas and opinions, to take action to solve problems, and to provide a bridge to the…

Evidence from the past 4 years confirms that private sector jobs are the best and first resort for welfare recipients seeking to enter the workforce and that the private sector can well absorb the entry of these new workers. The model of wage-based transitional employment may be a more effective means of helping hard-to-employ welfare recipients…

The Department of Labor (DOL), Employment and Training Administration (ETA), awarded its final round of Job Training Partnership Act, Title IV, Pilot and Demonstration Grant Program funds for the Youth Opportunity Area Out-of-School Youth (YOA OSY) program in April 1999. Four of the 5 programs were audited in 2000. This audit is a follow-up to the…

This summary outlines the key findings from a national evaluation of the first-year trials of the New Relationship with Schools (NRwS) carried out by a team at the National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER). The trials took place in the period September 2004 to July 2005 and involved 93 schools in eight local educational authorities…

This report examines effects of the Self-Sufficiency Project (SSP) for three age groups of children (younger cohort aged 3-5, middle cohort aged 6-11, and older cohort aged 12-18) at the 36-month interview. A companion report on effects of the SSP on adults is available separately. Chapter 1 describes the SSP incentive, project design, and SSP…

School and district administrators, as well as policymakers, are increasingly recognizing that early education and intervention services for young children have a direct and positive impact on later school performance and quality of life. But which programs and services should be operated and funded? To answer that question, this book highlights…

This report, which is intended for individuals developing family literacy (FL) programs, contains background information on the research, development, operation, evaluation, and outcomes of federal- and state-level FL initiatives. Discussed in section 1 are the following topics: the importance/benefits of FL programs; definitions of literacy and…

This document, which is in the form of a multiple-page table, provides the following information about each of the 163 currently existing federal employment training programs: (1) fiscal year 1995 appropriation; (2) summary of the program's purpose as it related to employment training activities; (3) authorizing legislation and U.S. Code citation;…

This volume, Interim Report No. 3 in a 3-year study, considers literacy programs designed to qualify employees for promotions or professional advancement. It adopts a multidimensional definition of moving ahead, one that extends to monetary rewards, career development, and employment security. The volume is divided into two parts: report and case…

A study examined the nature and operation of the institutions in which exemplary vocational education programs exist. Three research questions guided the study: Are there common elements that characterize institutions as exemplary? How is the presence of these common elements reflected in educational levels and types of institutions? and What…

Florida supported a wide range of educational activities for adults through an extensive network of public and private agencies during fiscal year 1989-90. In 1990, 419,429 adults participated in adult education programs. Adult educational programs assisted adults in completing requirements for U.S. citizenship and getting off welfare. A total of…

During 1992-93, 170,146 secondary and 140,681 postsecondary students were enrolled in secondary-level vocational training (VT) programs throughout Florida. A total of 12,545 single parents, displaced homemakers, and single pregnant women received VT-related services. Nontraditional vocational training programs served 2,995 females and 476 males.…

A total of 117 descriptions of notable programs and promising practices related to 30 specific problems, practices, and goals in American postsecondary education are presented. The programs described are the result of three searches made by the staff of the National Commission on Excellence in Education, although neither the staff nor the…