State policymakers, including state leaders, districts, and professional associations, play a role in fostering an environment that supports the development of effective school principals, with the broad policy objective of achieving high principal quality across the state. This report examines how seven states use state policy levers to advance…

States play a role in fostering an environment that develops and supports effective school leaders. Prior research has highlighted opportunities to enhance state involvement in supporting school leadership through a range of policy levers, especially by promoting improvements to principal preparation (Manna, 2015; Davis, 2016). The Wallace…

Federal and other studies have noted that exposure to violence and substance abuse make Native American youth susceptible to becoming involved with the justice system. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) was asked to examine federal and tribal efforts to address juvenile delinquency and the barriers tribes face in doing so. This report…

Understanding digital supports for early learning is paramount for school readiness and later mathematics learning. We present results from a randomized control trial evaluating a digital app (Measure Up!) and a parent companion app (Super Vision) designed to teach children measurement concepts, a skill that many teachers do not feel comfortable…

The middle grades have become the agreed upon starting point for high-quality Career Technical Education (CTE) programs, as this represents a critical time for students making important decisions that may have a lasting impact on their careers. However, there lacks a common view among state and local leaders on what makes up a high-quality middle…

The objective of this audit was to determine whether the U.S. Department of Education's (Department) overall information technology (IT) security programs and practices were effective as they relate to Federal information security requirements. To answer this objective, the Department's performance was rated in accordance with Fiscal Year (FY)…

This dissertation study investigates the complexities of the relationship between literacy and international development in Indonesia. I focus on the Literacy Boost program from the international non-governmental organization Save the Children, and I explore how the program was differentially implemented and received in two sites:…

Schools across the nation are implementing innovative practices; however, questions remain regarding how to facilitate quality implementation. Research designs that emphasize high degrees of control over independent variables result in findings with internal validity, but that may not generalize to complex, dynamic educational systems. The purpose…

The Elon Gap Experience (EGE) was conceived out of Elon University's most recent strategic plan, the Elon Commitment (Elon University, 2009). One theme calls for "strategic and innovative pathways in undergraduate and graduate education," specifically "to launch a service program as part of a gap-year program" (Elon University,…

Evaluability assessment (EA) has potential as a design option for thesis and dissertation studies, serving as a practical training experience for both technical and nontechnical evaluation skills. Based on a content review of a sample of EA theses and dissertations from graduate professional degree programs, the authors of this article found that…

Recent literature has usefully explored the application of complexity theory to evaluation. However, there is little discussion of the contextual conditions in applying complexity theory. Drawing upon a single complexity-consistent public health programme evaluation and subsequent policy decisions, this paper considers how programme framing and…

For more than a decade education practitioners have promoted the professional learning community (PLC) as an effective way to provide professional development to teachers. As more PLCs are established in schools and districts nationwide, education stakeholders--researchers, practitioners, administrators, and policymakers--are interested in…

Barriers to higher education persist among the Latino population across the United States. This project (IRB approval 18-001240), framed within the Engagement and Outreach Scholars Academy at East Carolina University, aimed to identify the obstacles to accessing higher education faced by the local Latino community and evaluate some ways to make…

This study discusses the effectiveness of a science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) program spanning grades six through eight in a traditional, urban school district located in Northeastern Ohio. The history and expressed need for STEM education within post-steel producing and economically depressed regions are discussed. Important…

Anchored on Evans' professional development (PD) model, this study aimed to develop, implement, and evaluate a professional development program on designing participatory action research (PAR) projects for basic education teachers. The teachers are from Junior and Senior High School teaching English, Mathematics, and Science. The PD program…