School counselors across the United States are implementing comprehensive school counseling programs, such as those following the American School Counselor Association (ASCA) National Model. ASCA awards a designation honoring exemplary school counseling programs: Recognized ASCA Model Program (RAMP). Although a growing number of studies have…

In an era of accountability, it is vital that schools can define their success in ways that transcend a single high-stakes testing day at the end of the school year. While student growth and proficiency are important educational measures, also focusing on health and wellness, stewardship of resources, and sustainability education, offers a unique…

After schools were closed in AY 2019-2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, teachers were expected to continue two-way communication and collaboration with their students' families without much guidance. In this study, we focus on how five teacher candidates navigated and continued their efforts of communication and collaboration with students'…

The expectation for classroom educators to engage in evidence-based decision-making is standard protocol in most K-12 classrooms, yet translating educational research into effective practice is mired with implementation challenges. The research-practice partnership (RPP) model has emerged as a promising framework to support stakeholders as they…

Although isolating, lockdown also created unexpected opportunities for connection and inspiration. This article describes the lockdown literacies of a sibling pair, Marco and Mara, as they wrote digital texts/books for Literacy-Cast, a virtual, interactive literacy space offered by Appalachian State University from March 2020-present. Since…

This dissertation showcases collective sensemaking in action. The study was situated in a larger North Carolina project, in which educators took a systems approach to update the state's instructional guidance infrastructure during content standards reform. Specifically, I investigated how K-5 educators from multiple stakeholder groups--teachers,…

The Faculty-in-Residence (FIR) initiative bridges resources of a regional university, its College of Education, and a K-8 partnership school in ways that enhance children's learning and well-being. A core commitment undergirding the FIR role is the recognition that blurred boundaries, collaborative relationships, and the reimagination of how…

This article describes a program created by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, alongside school-based colleagues in nearby Durham County. They created the Partnership for Authentic Communities of Educators (PACE) program to help bridge the gap between pre-service teacher learning and beginning teacher experiences. In…

The U.S. South, in spite of its racist Jim Crow era laws and political history, has the fastest growing Latine immigrant population in the country. In North Carolina alone, the Latine population is responsible for over one-third of the state's growth exceeding all other population groups. Despite this rapid-growing change, the state is third to…

This document presents the proceedings of the 28th Annual Research Forum held June 27, 2024, at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Included are the following eight action research papers: (1) College Athletics and the High School Athlete: Perspectives of High School Coaches (Michael Goehrig); (2) The Influence of Blogging on…

In 2016, Wake County Public School System (WCPSS) senior leadership determined that students were not consistently engaged with content, instruction, or tasks that support the specific instructional shifts in the North Carolina State Standards and 4Cs (communication, collaboration, critical thinking, and creativity). After an internal review…

The start of kindergarten signifies the beginning of elementary school and everything that may come with it: a new building, new teachers, new expectations, and a different routine and culture. These new students transition into kindergarten from different settings, bringing with them a variety of assets and experiences. From a holistic…

The role of teacher educators as researcher-practitioner is viewed in this narrative reflection from the perspective of the author, the professor of record for a course in which an early field experience tutoring opportunity was embedded. The manuscript reports on the tutoring experiences through the lens of the author with instigations and…

Over the past few decades, instructional policy supports -- encompassing standards, curricula, and assessments -- have featured centrally in the education reform movement. So, too, have efforts to align them. In this article, we conduct interviews with local educators with responsibility for early education about the alignment of instructional…

Frequent absences in the primary grades are associated with school disengagement, academic failure, and eventual dropout. The Early Truancy Prevention Project (ETPP) was designed to improve attendance of primary grade children by facilitating communication between teachers and parents and giving the teachers the lead role in intervening with…