As the first state to offer universal preschool to three-year-olds, Illinois' experience with early childhood education (ECE) policy reform efforts offers lessons about how such change takes shape. This report details Illinois' ECE activities from 1992 to the present, with a particular focus on the business role in ECE policy. Lessons learned…

In the article, "Completion Agenda for Baby Boomers", Moltz highlights how community colleges are currently implementing programs, such as the American Association of Community Colleges' Plus 50 Completion strategy, to encourage older learners to return to America's college campuses. The effects of the recent recession and the…

This research discusses the value of collaborating to develop strategies that enhance teacher readiness for the marginalized student and the use of qualitative data that can lead to student academic and social success. Education domains include the learning environment, technology, and building parent and community connections. This research…

The second annual implementation report for the Accelerating Opportunity (AO) initiative in four states finds that: (1) colleges aligned pathways and supports with local needs; (2) students were satisfied with AO; (3) AO instructors grew more adept at team teaching; (4) colleges struggled to recruit adult education students; (5) states and…

The purpose of this study was to identify the attitudes and concerns community college faculty have about student learning outcomes assessment and to further explore the relationship between these factors and faculty levels of involvement in assessment activities. Combining the conceptual frameworks of the concerns-based adoption Model (CBAM) and…

This report describes the results of a study that used administrative data to better understand the need for employment-related services and supports among youth in foster care and how one community-based employment training and job placement program in Chicago is trying to address those needs. Among other things, the report describes the…

The focus of this research is the conflicted nature of the lived experience of public community college academic department chairs. In many colleges, department chairs are faculty chosen by colleagues and/or administration. Once selected, chairs assume supervisory responsibilities. The duality of this colleague-supervisor role has the potential…

Despite record growth in international student enrollment at U.S. community colleges, little is known regarding how the international students learn about--and ultimately decide to attend--community colleges. This research study identifies the decision making factors and explores the sources of information utilized by international students who…

Assessments of U.S. students typically reveal stronger performance in science than mathematics yet their science performance remains uninspiring at best. Whether the metric considered is an international benchmark from TIMSS or PISA or the nation's NAEP report card, the mediocre portrait of U.S. science achievement has remained virtually unchanged…

With the highest incarceration rate in the world, the United States has set an inauspicious precedent. More than 1.7 million American children--one in every 43--have a parent in jail or prison. The generational effects of incarceration are deep and lasting and include vastly increased risks of criminal justice involvement among the children of…

American community colleges are complex institutions facing complex challenges. Enormous demands are being placed on the community college that impacts the focus of the community college mission. Debate whether the mission should be vertical, horizontal, or all-comprehensive is constant. As the educational institution known as the community…

The Afterschool Alliance, in partnership with MetLife Foundation, is proud to present the first in its latest series of four issue briefs examining critical issues facing middle school youth and the vital role afterschool programs play in addressing these issues. This brief explores afterschool and school improvement. In communities across the…

The focus of this report is to describe the diverse, potentially overlapping range of student outcomes for community college entrants, such as vertical transfer, earning an associate degree, or earning a certificate while taking into consideration differences in college readiness as well as other student characteristics. (Contains 5 figures, 7…

As a pilot site selected to participate in Illinois' Shifting Gears (SG) initiative in 2007, Oakton Community College (OCC) partnered with Presbyterian Homes to develop a bridge course to prepare a cadre of their employed Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs) to enter college-credit prerequisite courses to a Practical Nursing program. Oakton…

Keeping up with alumni has always been tough for community colleges. It's not unusual for students to transfer to other institutions and leave the area, or to attend school briefly only to be swallowed up again by the workforce. Fortunately, a new breed of social media is making alumni outreach easier. And colleges are taking advantage. This…