The existing literature on non-tenure-track (NTT) faculty focuses largely on whether relying on contingent faculty is harmful to students. However, studies rarely survey contingent faculty or explore how to increase NTT faculty participation in outcomes assessment, even though contingent faculty teach most general education courses. Our survey of…

Ten years ago in July 2006, 64 mostly starry-eyed men and women attended the NAIS Institute for New Heads (INH) in order to learn the ropes of headship. These newly minted heads were filled with enthusiasm, commitment, and passion, along with humility and a bit of healthy trepidation. One core group connected under the careful guidance of…

This study surveys educators who have completed, or are in their second year of, an administrative coaching program that results in a California Clear Administrative Credential, also known as Tier II. The purpose of the study is to determine the perceptions of these educators regarding whether current practices in administrative coaching programs…

The purpose of this study was to explore distributed leadership and how leadership practices are actualized in three selected schools in Southern California. This qualitative, multiple case study used survey research and interviews to assess how distributed leadership was practiced in three selected elementary schools located within one school…

School climate is increasingly intertwined with efforts to create safe schools and improve social-emotional learning and academic outcomes. While current definitions of school climate implicate the decisions and actions of school staff members, the majority of school climate research focuses on the perspectives of students. This study presents an…

School administrators are often responsible for observing and evaluating special education teachers. The current study examined the training school administrators received, their needed knowledge and supports, and their confidence in performing job functions related to special education teacher evaluation. A total of 929 school administrators in…

Advising is powerful because it attends to core elements of each student's success: setting academic goals based on transfer and/or career interests, developing an academic plan to attain those goals, and staying on track until those goals are met. Each of these big-picture tasks encompasses dozens of smaller ones which include: (1) Raising…

We examined civic engagement in middle childhood and the degree to which parents' civic beliefs (i.e., social trust and civic efficacy), civic participation, and socialization practices were associated with indicators of children's civic engagement (i.e., social responsibility and civic values). Survey data were collected from 359 racially,…

Currently in the United States, 50 states, 5 territories, and the District of Columbia have established prekindergarten (pre-K) age 4 learning standards that are intended to outline skills and knowledge that set children on a path to success in kindergarten and upcoming grades. These standards are emphasized as a centralizing force in early…

The purpose of this study was to examine the construct validity of social loafing using convergent and discriminant validity principles. Three instruments that purport to measure social loafing were factor analyzed: A ten-item instrument by George (1992), a 13-item instrument by Mulvey and Klein (1998), and a 22-item instrument by Jassawalla,…

This technical supplement to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Employment and Training (E&T) evaluation final reports presents details of the technical approach used for creating analysis variables and estimating impacts of treatment group services on outcomes, including employment, earnings, and SNAP participation. It also…

Children spend as much as ten hours per day, five days a week in childcare centers and preschools. In providing healthy environments, these facilities deal with a variety of pest and pesticide issues influenced by their geographic location, local environment, and pesticide regulations. Some rely extensively on pesticides while others use…

Educational administrators are expected to provide guidance to various stakeholders within the school environment. Educational administrator personality traits and leadership style were the focus of this study. Two research questions guided the focus of the current study. The first question examines the association between the degree of the…

While education is often talked about as a standalone system, most people experience education as just one part of their broader lives. Schools do not exist in siloes, but serve as a place where people and policy overlap and intersect. The implication of this is that while what happens inside of school buildings is incredibly important, such as…

Objective: This study asked how faculty behaviors and course decisions best predict learning gains for students. Next, it investigated how the identified engaging practices vary based on faculty employment status, course experience, course level taught, and teaching area. Method: The sample was taken from students and faculty at one community…