This article describes an academic choice program in Texas public schools where 8th graders are being given a choice of three different academic plans to follow through graduation, two of which are distinctively tougher than the third. Policymakers in Texas, Arkansas, and Indiana are opting to raise academic standards by making a college-prep…

Faced with stiffer economic competition and worried about the skills of their future workforces, many states are trying to connect education from preschool through postsecondary so that more students are prepared for further study, work, and citizenship. In the past decade, 30 states have created what are often called "P-16" councils or …

States should toughen their high school graduation requirements and test to reflect the English and math skills that students actually need to succeeds in college. To identify what those skills are, the American Diploma Project analyzed employment data and conducted research with more than 300 higher education official, front-line manager, and…