Rural schools in the western region states of California, Arizona, Utah, and Nevada are facing enormous challenges due to major shifts in the demographics of the region. Rapid growth in student enrollment, particularly of minority and limited English proficient students, the increasing rate of rural poverty and homelessness, and a projected…

This report reviews in detail the accomplishments of the third year of the 1999-2002 contract of the Outreach and Technical Assistance Network (OTAN). It describes and quantifies the services--electronic collaboration, access to information services, and research, development, and assistance in using technology--provided by the entire three-year…

This final report describes the PEERS (Providing Education for Everyone in Regular Schools) Project, a 5-year collaborative systems change project in California to facilitate the integration of students with severe disabilities who were previously served at special centers into services at regular schools and the integration of students in special…

This technical assistance planning guide was developed as part of the PEERS (Providing Education for Everyone in Regular Schools) Project, a California project to facilitate the integration of students with severe disabilities previously at special centers into services at regular school sites and to facilitate the integration of students in…

While Latinos make up approximately 9 percent of the total population of the United States, they comprise over 25 percent of California's population. Although over half of Latino American women have entered the workforce, a severe family and child poverty rate persists. Since 1990, through a project called "El Comienzo" ("The…

This handbook is compiled as a resource for senate presidents. In this handbook, they will find information intended to supplement the wealth of data contained on the Website for the Academic Senate of California. Contained on the pages of this handbook, a senate president will find information about the legislation and regulations that affect…

To support states in improving the quality of their Perkins accountability data, the Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE), US Department of Education, invited State Directors of Career-Technical Education to submit requests for individualized technical assistance. In response to a request by the New Mexico Public Education Department…

This final report describes activities and accomplishments of the California PEERS (Providing Education for Everyone in Regular Schools) Outreach Project, a cooperative effort of the California Department of Education, California State University at Hayward, and eight school districts. The project focused on increasing the capacity of the…

This report briefly describes the Marin City, California community and summarizes progress made by the Far West Laboratory's Western Regional Laboratory in the development of a long-range community intervention program. Marin City is a predominantly low-income, black community in which 30 percent of households, mainly those headed by single women,…

California school districts are authorized to designate qualified teachers--who do not hold special Commission on Teacher Credentialing-issued documents authorizing bilingual or English language development instruction--to provide English language development and/or academic instruction via the primary language to limited-English-proficient (LEP)…

As part of a 3-year California statewide plan for vocational education, a study was conducted to assess the effectiveness of career/vocational counseling at a sample of community colleges. Letters were sent to all California community colleges requesting their participation, and surveys were mailed to the 16 institutions that expressed interest in…

In order to achieve the expectations for children's learning stipulated by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, greater attention needs to be given to child care policy and funding. This report details a study examining strategies in seven states that have integrated early education program standards in child care, by directly tying standards to…

The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) documents dimensions of quality in undergraduate education and provides information and assistance to colleges, universities, and other organizations to improve student learning. Its primary activity is annually surveying college students to assess the extent to which they engage in educational…

Provisions related to achieving sex equity in vocational education appear throughout the Carl D. Perkins Act. The most innovative are the Title IIA set-asides for single parents and homemakers and sex equity program. The California State Plan for Vocational Education assigns the responsibilities of the Sex Equity Coordinator to the Sex Equity…

Volume II contains six appendices to Volume I, including short summaries of the 18 schools that were studied. Appendices included in this report are: (1) Evaluation Methodology; (2) Promising Reform Strategies; (3) Descriptions of the Research-Based Methods or Strategies Being Used; (4) Short Summaries of 18 Comprehensive School Reform…