The goal of this study was to provide insights on the extent to which high school students receive support for college and career planning, the mechanisms through which they receive this information, and how this varies across students and settings using data from a multi-state, multi-study project focused on advising for postsecondary…

In contrast to prior federally mandated school reforms, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) allows states more discretion in reforming their lowest performing schools, removes requirements to disrupt the status quo, and does not allocate substantial additional funds. Using a regression discontinuity design, we evaluate a state turnaround…

Adolescents with autism spectrum disorder have limited participation in the transition planning process, despite the link between active participation and an improvement in postsecondary education and employment outcomes. The Secondary School Success Checklist was designed to support transition planning for adolescents with autism spectrum…

It has been said that education is the key to success, and today's youth are tomorrow's human resources. This is the 21 century; and students, who will be the human resources of tomorrow, are being prepared for jobs that may not even exist today. Legislators, policy makers, and researchers have encouraged methods to ensure teachers deliver high…

In contrast to prior federally mandated school reforms, the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) allows states more discretion in reforming their lowest performing schools, removes requirements to disrupt the status quo, and does not allocate substantial additional funds. Using a regression discontinuity design, we evaluate a state turnaround…

Between 2006 and 2010, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction intervened in 128 low-performing schools, combining approaches consistent with school restructuring and transformation. In improved schools, local educators reconstructed key school functions, a distinctly nonlinear process more like the work of skilled craftsmen than that…

California's alternative education options for youth vulnerable to dropping out of school have been established at different historical points and for different student age and target populations. For purposes of this brief, "alternative school" is defined as belonging to one of six legislatively authorized types of public (non-charter)…

TechMath is a professional development program that forms collaborations among businesses, colleges, and schools for the purpose of promoting Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) careers. TechMath has provided strategies for creating highquality professional development by bringing together teachers, students, and business…

Superintendents and principals can have a positive and decisive impact on student achievement and higher graduation rates. Their essential leadership can illuminate the path to excellence for faculty and students. In upgrading curriculum and instruction, school leaders need to keep abreast of practices proven effective in other districts and…

The purpose of this research was to examine the college and career plans of a high-achieving group of students, high school valedictorians, to determine whether the females had equal aspirations with the males at the end of the senior year of high school in terms of their intended college major, the selectivity of their chosen college, and for…

Graduating students who can compete in the digital age is imperative but remains an uphill battle in the absence of a strong national technology policy, empowered education leadership, and ongoing dialogue involving business, community, government, and educators. Meantime, in pockets around the country, some states, districts, and schools are…

A policy analysis conducted jointly by Achieve, Inc. and Jobs for the Future, outlined in this report, suggest ways that North Carolina can create a more coherent, intentional, and aligned assessment and accountability system to improve both achievement and graduation rates for struggling and out-of-school students. The report includes a…

This paper examines the broad concept of college readiness, the research on advanced placement courses in high schools, and recommends that a statewide effort is needed to increase college readiness, college acclimation, college persistence, and college graduation rates. This effort needs to include a shared vision and the inclusion of multiple…

This paper describes a study of a collaborative initiative between a rural high school and a university. The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of collaboration in a rural school reform partnership. What grew out of this study was a collaborative model of a partnership. While partnerships are not unique, there is a unique…

In a rural Eastern North Carolina county, a team of students and teachers has come together to explore the scientific dynamics of a historic millpond. This article talks about the Bennett's Millpond Environmental Learning Project. The project immerses students and teachers in sustained contact with science technology tools as they study the water…