Stateline.org recently called this recession the worst in 50 years for state budgets. As has been the case in past economic downturns, higher education looks to be particularly hard hit. Funds from the American Recovery and Relief Act may have postponed some of the difficulty for many colleges and universities, but the outlook for public higher…

The research on the potential relationship of the Northwest Evaluation Association's Measures of Academic Progress (NWEA MAP) and the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT) was conducted in two phases and focused on middle schools with a grade configuration of 6-8 in the state of Illinois. The first phase of the research examined whether or…

This dissertation is an empirical investigation of educational policies, practices and organizational settings that shape the schooling experiences of Chicago Public School (CPS) students. The first chapter, "Educational Choice and Student Participation: The Case of the Supplemental Educational Services Provision in Chicago Public…

High-quality out-of-school-time (OST) programs have a positive effect on youth development, but many cities have found it difficult to address the challenges of expanding and improving the quality of programs offered to underserved and high-need students. In response, The Wallace Foundation sponsored an initiative to help five cities increase…

This paper examines a burgeoning network of organizations that is inventing new forms of community renewal and citizenship education. Their names vary--some call themselves public policy institutes, others centers for civic life--yet they share a common methodology, one aimed at tackling tough public issues, strengthening communities, and…

What happens when teams from 57 cities building afterschool systems gather to discuss two key system responsibilities--improving afterschool programs and using data for informed decision-making? Lots of rich discussion. This report covers a national afterschool conference held in February 2013. It details what mayors, program providers, system…

An effective school requires an effective leader, but great principals rarely just happen. They are cultivated. This Wallace Perspective draws on a decade of foundation research and work in school leadership to show how urban school districts can play a major role in ensuring they have principals who can boost teaching and learning in troubled…

During the National Association of State Directors of Special Education's (NASDSE) 2005 annual meeting, a panel of youth representatives challenged states to do a better job of including youth with disabilities in state-level decision making (e.g., as members of state advisory panels [SAPs] and/or transition councils). State directors of special…

"Lumina Foundation Lessons" is an occasional publication in which the Foundation shares the results of its grantees' work on strategies to increase student access to and success in college. This issue highlights the work of grantees at three distinct postsecondary institutions: Tallahassee Community College in Florida, Harry S. Truman…

As part of a multiyear research study on the preparation of educators to use assessment data for instructional improvement, the present study is a pilot test of a research-based professional development intervention for career-technical teachers. Forty-eight educators at nine sites in five states participated in a 1-day workshop followed by…

The primary objective of this qualitative study is to explore the impact of autonomy on the relationship between schools and districts of the school level across governance, operations, curriculum and instruction and the decision making that accompanies the each of these factors. More specifically, this study focuses the impact of autonomy within…

Having an abundance of data residing in individual silos across campus, but little decision-ready information, is a typical scenario at many institutions. One problem is that the terms "data warehousing" and "business intelligence" refer to very different things, although the two often go hand-in-hand. "Data…

"Leading indicators"--indicators that provide early signals of progress toward academic achievement--enable education leaders, especially at the central office level in a school district, to make more strategic and less reactive decisions about services and supports to improve student learning. These indicators are a way of viewing and…

The impact of collective bargaining in selected areas of institutional decision making at Illinois community colleges was studied. The study institutions were public community colleges that had comprehensive academic programs and were campus-based. Questionnaire responses were received from 645 teaching faculty. Findings include the following: the…

This study examines whether risk factors associated with child externalizing behavior symptoms differ between two similar low-income, urban communities, using baseline parent data of 154 African American youth (ages 9-15) participating in the Collaborative HIV-Prevention and Adolescent Mental Health Project (CHAMP) family program. Separate…