Uses a panel dataset for schools in large Texas cities to compare student performance gains in Dallas, site of a school-based incentive program, with those in four other cities. Results show positive, relatively large effects for Hispanic and white seventh graders, but not for black students or third graders. (MLH)

This report summarizes short-term impacts of the Quantum Opportunity Program (QOP) demonstration, which helped at-risk high school-age youth graduate and enroll in postsecondary education or training. QOP involved intensive case management and mentoring emphasizing after school supplemental academic education, developmental activities, and…

General Strain Theory (GST) argues that drug use is one way adolescents mitigate negative emotions brought on by aversive environmental stimuli. To date, many of the empirical tests of the strain-drug use relationship have neglected to include measures of negative emotion, despite its prominence in GST's etiology of deviant behavior. The following…

In an interview, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, director of the Congressional Budget Office, told National Public Radio's Terry Gross that determining the annual funding requirements for a program such as Social Security is relatively easy. According to him, health care is very different and is a lot harder to solve than Social Security. In this article,…

For more than thirty years, researchers have been interested in the issue of student retention in college. This study found that students who highly valued financial success were less likely to continue at the same institution from their first to their second year of college and were more likely to drop out of college than students who valued…

High rates of dropping out from mental health services are documented for children and their families. These high rates exist at different treatment stages, in different service settings, and for different populations of children and families. Some researchers have developed and tested engagement interventions to address barriers to service access…

The author of this article contends that the U.S. government, in conjunction with public and private sectors, are failing American society by failing the vast majority of America's urban youth. This failure is seen in America's public inner city schools where the numbers of students graduating from high school vs. the number of students…

This article describes results from the Oregon Latino Youth Survey, which was designed to identify factors that promote or hinder academic success for Latino middle school and high school youngsters. The study samples included a total of 564 Latino and non-Latino students and parents. Analyses showed that Latino students reported a high frequency…

The current study provides empirical data associated with successful program completion by examining the differing characteristics between clients who graduated from a community-based reintegration program operating in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and those who left prior to graduation. Substance dependence risk, level of education, employment or…

Objective: The purpose of the study was to: (a) investigate the pre-treatment levels of interpersonal dependency and violence among women entering a 16-week, court-mandated, batterer intervention program (BIP) and determine if there were any associations between interpersonal dependency and violence; (b) investigate differences in demographic…

Adolescent parents and their children are both at critical points in their lives, when their life courses can be shaped toward healthy development, stability, and productivity, or toward life-long poverty and dependency. Efforts to improve outcomes for these young families must take advantage of every opportunity to connect them with the services…

Current prevalence rates of Conduct Disorder (CD) in girls may be an underestimate due to inappropriate diagnostic criteria, biased perceptions by those responsible for reporting problematic behavior, and differential social constraints for each gender. Relatively few published studies of CD and related behaviors in girls exist. Available evidence…

Tennessee Code Annotated (T.C.A.) Section 49-7-2 (c) (7) requires the Tennessee Higher Education Commission to "submit a biennial report to the governor and the general assembly, commenting upon major developments, trends, new policies, budgets and financial considerations which in the judgment of the commission will be useful to the governor…

This is the 12th annual report on conditions affecting the Racine Unified School District (RUSD). This year, the analysis again focuses on the long-term historical trends in RUSD. The analysis compares RUSD data to data of nine peer school districts as well as statewide data. The peer districts are defined as those Wisconsin districts with…

This is the second year report in a five-year evaluation of the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP). This program, which began in 1990, provides government-funded vouchers for low-income children to attend private schools in the City of Milwaukee. The maximum voucher amount in 2007-08 was $6,607, and approximately 20,000 children use a…