In 1998, Congress authorized the School Breakfast Program Pilot Project (SBPP) to study the implementation and effects of providing universal free school breakfast in six school districts across the United States. For three years, from School Year (SY) 2000-2001 through SY 2002-2003, these six school districts received federal funds to offer…

This report presents findings from a recent evaluation of 51 school health education programs nationwide. All programs were currently functioning and ongoing, had been evaluated, and provided some evidence of effectiveness. Each program was designed to improve the short- or long-term health status of children and youth in a school-based or…

This paper introduces some recent changes by the current administration that are increasing the visibility of program evaluation in Washington and then describes some concerns raised by this new attention. The paper also suggests ways that evaluators can assist federal decision makers in using evaluation results wisely. Over the past decade,…

AmeriCorps is composed of three programs, State and National; National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC); and Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA). The focus of this report is on the AmeriCorps State/National program. Education-related activities have been a priority for AmeriCorps' parent organization, the National Corporation for Public…

Civic education programs attempt to transfer the tools necessary for participation in a democratic polity, and to induce individuals to engage in civic acts. This study is part of a larger United States Agency for International Development (USAID) effort to: (1) assess the impact of USAID civic education programming in developing nations; (2)…

This monograph is intended as a guide to support self-evaluation of truancy reduction and prevention programs by those involved in their ongoing operations. It is one of four in a series addressing various aspects of truancy, was published by the National Dropout Prevention Center at Clemson University with support from the South Carolina…

State child welfare systems need to invest significant resources developing training programs that build knowledge and skill levels of the child welfare workforce. Often these training programs have produced only limited results, perhaps because the training is not linked directly to the knowledge and skills necessary to perform complex human…

This report, written in French, provides an evaluation of a bilingual French and German experiment within the framework of compulsory schooling in Sierre, a community in Valais, Switzerland. The program began began in the 1994-1995 school year. The models examined are an early partial immersion kindergarten program (model I) and a middle, partial…

An empirical evaluation of the federal class-size reduction (CSR) program in Wake County, North Carolina, during the 1999-2000 school year is presented. The qualitative process evaluation showed implementation issues involving the mechanics and the meaning of CSR. Often, schools did not understand where CSR occurred because of changing enrollment…

The material in this Technical Assistance Packet is intended to help mentoring programs monitor individual matches and develop a larger picture that provides a composite view of the strengths and shortcomings of all their matches. The packet contains the Youth Survey, a tool to monitor the quality of individual mentoring relationships, determine…

This toolkit presents a collection of accessible guidelines, measures, and tools to guide and implement evaluation of parenting education and support interventions. Designed primarily for people who are new to evaluation, it contains additional advice and guidance for those with a higher level of understanding or knowledge and it may also be…

This paper describes the methods engaged in by an internal evaluation unit within a large school district to transition program staff from participating in a formal program evaluation to continuing the responsibility of program monitoring once an evaluation ends. Formal multiyear program evaluations can provide program managers and staff with…

First-year assistant principals are commonly faced with problems that they are not prepared for, including dealing with socialization to a new work environment, tension between administrators and teachers, resolving conflict, and learning how to be in a secondary leadership position. Sometimes they quit or request to change jobs. A professional…

This chapter outlines the considerations necessary in planning and conducting evaluations of teacher leadership programs. It contains a discussion of different definitions of evaluation, their underlying philosophies, and their importance for teacher leadership programs. Specific ideas for conducting teacher leadership program evaluations are…

In summer 2002, the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) surveyed 50 specialized (programmatic) accreditors to learn whether and to what extent these accreditors are involved in the accreditation of distance learning. Specialized accreditors review programs and freestanding schools in areas such as law, medicine, business, and…