Distributed leadership practices were used by principals to engage teacher leaders in instructional leadership responsibilities to create an innovative learning culture in Title I elementary schools. It was not known how teachers described the influence of principal-distributed leadership practices on organizational learning and innovativeness in…

This Policy Brief provides a detailed look at 529 education savings plans -- investment accounts with tax advantages -- including a breakdown of maximum annual dollar amounts and state tax deductions allowed, state responses to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, information on legislation in 2018 that changes eligible expenses allowed under 529 plans and…

Congress amended and extended the "Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education" ("Perkins IV") in 2018 with passage of the "Strengthening Career and Technical Education Act for the 21st Century" ("Perkins V"); the law became effective on July 1, 2019. "Perkins V" increases federal funding for…

This qualitative study was designed to gain insight on Jewish leaders' conceptualizations and access to IDEA funding for their parentally placed private school children when Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) is not at issue. Additionally, this study explored the various ways Jewish leaders aid and advocate for these students. The current…

This brief reviews state plans submitted to the U.S. Department of Education as of October 1, 2017. It focuses on three key topics for early learning in the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA): setting clear goals and policy priorities for early learning, integrating early learning into school improvement, and supporting early childhood educator…

Across the country, effort is underway to restrict discussion, learning, and student support related to race and gender/sexual identity in educational settings, targeting schools with state legislation and politicians' orders; national conservative media and organizations; Board directives; and local actors wielding media-fueled talking points. To…

The National School Lunch Program's (NSLP) original goal was to help students in need, but policy changes in the past decade have made students from middle-income and upper-income families eligible for federally funded school meals. The Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), an expansion of the NSLP enacted in 2010, effectively created a federal…

Caught between extraordinary public expectations and relatively modest constitutional authority, U.S. presidents historically have fashioned all sorts of mechanisms--executive orders, proclamations, memoranda--by which to move their objectives forward. William Howell asserts that under President Barack Obama's administration, presidential…

Stuttering places students at-risk for being stereotyped and experiencing identity difficulties in school. This study hoped to fill a lacuna in the literature on the educational experiences of African American male stutterers. Six African American adult males who stuttered and lived in Washington, DC; Maryland; and/or Virginia participated in this…

In 2007, the U.S. Department of Education commissioned WestEd to develop a guide on using quality authorizing to promote high-quality charter schools. At the time, notions about how authorizers could contribute to the existence of such schools were in their infancy, and the publication, which profiles the oversight practices of eight selected…

The outcomes states gain from investing in postsecondary financial aid programs remain hotly debated, leading to great interest in developing programs that are both cost-effective and productive in helping states meet goals. In the 2012-13 academic year, states collectively provided approximately $11.2 billion in financial aid to students enrolled…

Implementation of school turnaround strategies under School Improvement Grant and Race to the Top programs has provided States with a unique opportunity to rethink how to govern effectively and to organize their efforts to improve their lowest achieving schools. States have had to consider such issues as whether to provide support directly to…

In this article, we explain how overly prescriptive, rigid state statutory and regulatory policy frameworks regarding teacher evaluation, tenure and employment decisions outstrip the statistical reliability and validity of proposed measures of teaching effectiveness. We begin with a discussion of the emergence of highly prescriptive state…

When schools closed their doors in March 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a scramble to adjust to remote learning. Over the summer and into the fall, the debate over reopening took center stage, as school leaders struggled to answer how and when it would be safe to return to the classroom. The Center for American Progress (CAP)…

Race to the Top States offer a wide range of supports for local educational agency (LEA) implementation of one of four school intervention models. Some States allocate resources on a regional basis, while others coordinate resources at the State level. Certain States also use data tools to measure district needs, capacity and progress on key…