This report presents school-level finance data on expenditures by function from the School-Level Finance Survey (SLFS). The SLFS is an extension of two existing collections being conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) in collaboration with the Census Bureau: the School District Finance Survey (F-33) and the state-level…

This report presents the findings from a rigorous national survey of charter school authorizers conducted in 2011 by the National Association of Charter School Authorizers (NACSA). This is the fourth time NACSA has conducted this type of national survey. As in years past, the vast majority of authorizers (90 percent) are school districts and they…

In 2017, the U.S. Department of Labor reported a record-high 6.2 million job openings. Yet many employers report they cannot find the well-prepared candidates they need in the South and across the country. The problem is students' lack of preparation for college and career training. Also in 2017, the ACT college admissions test examined the…

Every state can create secure, robust linkages between early childhood and K-12 data systems, and effectively use the information from these linkages to implement initiatives to support programs and children, answer key policy questions, and be transparent about how the state's early childhood investments prepare students for success in school and…

Until recently, states focused on ensuring the presence of a "highly qualified teacher" in every classroom. Under the 2001 reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), known as No Child Left Behind (NCLB), this title described a teacher holding at least a bachelor's degree and the appropriate state license and…

As the 21st century's first decade draws to a close, America's public school students are participating in online academic classes in increasingly large numbers. More than one million K-12 public school students took online courses in the 2007-2008 school year, according to an estimate in a recent Sloan Consortium survey. This represents a 47…

Governor Easley of North Carolina has made a sustained commitment to listening to educators and reforming schools to create the working conditions necessary for student and teacher success. With three iterations of the working conditions survey and about 150,000 responses to critical questions about their workplace, analyses have been consistent…

A survey of the medical technology profession in North Carolina was undertaken in 1981 by the North Carolina Area Health Education Center to promote statewide planning. One survey focus was institutional characteristics, including: current staff level, budget vacancies, qualifications to fill vacancies, number of resignations in the last year, and…

Information is presented on the three prepaid tuition programs and four college savings bond programs currently in operation in the United States, and the fiscal issues involved in their implementation are summarized. The three prepaid tuition programs are in Michigan, Wyoming, and Florida. The characteristics of the three programs are outlined…

The purpose of a state report card is to provide the general public and policymakers with information to assess and improve post secondary education in each state. "Measuring Up 2008" is the fifth in a series of biennial report cards that evaluates states in six overall performance categories: (1) Preparation for post-secondary education…

For over a decade the Public School Forum of North Carolina has used a study group approach that employs the Forum's Board of Directors as a research team that works with others invited to participate in examining major problems facing North Carolina's schools. A request from the Glaxo Foundation led to the Forum's sixth major Study Group. This…

This final report analyzes computer literacy and the use of computers in the public schools and community colleges of North Carolina, based on testimony from educators and administrators at the university, community college, and public school levels; from organizations concerned about education; and from corporations that produce computer hardware…

This report presents a statistical profile of secondary science teachers in grades 7-12 in North Carolina public schools. Data are provided and discussed in 9 sections under these headings: (1) basic information (teachers, subject and student membership, certification, and subject and certification areas); (2) subjects and certification; (3)…

This report is based on an almost 5-year continual study of selected collaboratives engaged in education reform and improvement with a focus on science, math, and technology in schools serving K-12 students in rural America. This version of the final report of the study is primarily intended for use by educators, decision makers, and others who…

This is one of several reports used to monitor the public-school system in North Carolina. This report has three purposes: (1) to assist policymakers in gauging the status and progress of student achievement in the state; (2) to compare student achievement in North Carolina with student achievement nationwide; and (3) to inform the public of the…