Non-parental arrangements for young children serve a dual function as supports for parental activities and educational inputs for children. However, arrangements that are suited to meet families' specific needs and preferences are sometimes in tension with experts' definitions of "quality." Researchers and policymakers increasingly…

This study examines state- and county-level data on population, age, race and ethnicity, housing occupancy and housing tenure, education, labor force, employment and unemployment, income and poverty, health insurance coverage, disability status, migration patterns, and veteran status from the 2010-2014 American Community Survey (ACS) for the 13…

Of the copious research on the labor market returns to college, very little has adequately modeled the pathways of non-completers or compared their outcomes with those of award holders. In this paper, we present a novel method for linking non-completers with completers according to their program of study. This method allows us to calculate the…

Technology plays a vital role in education by linking students to resources around the world. In the past three to five years, community colleges in the southeast region of the United States have received funding through various initiatives, allowing them to make significant changes. In 2013 North Carolina Community College System website listed…

Across the country, collaborative efforts are bringing together a variety of organizations that work with school-age children and youth, including out-of-school time programs and nonprofit service agencies, to improve educational outcomes in their communities. However, linking activities to outcomes can be a particular problem for nonprofit…

A large number of new community college presidents will be hired in the next 5 years due to vacancies. New leaders must be prepared to lead their institutions through the challenges facing community colleges. Forty-one community college presidents in North Carolina participated in our research (70.7% response rate). We found that community college…

Community colleges across the country are plagued with tight budgets--caused in part by state disinvestment and chronic federal underfunding. For rural community colleges, these challenges are even more acute, as their needs are greater and the costs of providing services higher. The COVID-19 pandemic has only deepened the prosperity gap between…

Urban agriculture initiatives are on the rise, providing healthy food while teaching a land ethic to youth. In parallel, increasing numbers of university graduates are obtaining Extension work requiring the effective communication of science in a diverse, urban, low-income setting. This study evaluates a pilot service-learning program, the…

Surprisingly few empirical studies examine the experience of veterans as they transition into community college. Using Schlossberg's transition model and 4S framework--situation, self, supports, and strategies--this article portrays a subset of findings from a qualitative study involving recent military veterans transitioning into community…

Of the copious research on the labor market returns to college, very little has adequately modeled the pathways of non-completers or compared their outcomes with those of award holders. In this paper, we present a novel method for linking non-completers with completers according to their program of study. This method allows us to calculate the…

Both pre-service and in-service learning are opportunities for community college faculty to learn teaching approaches to meet the learning needs of the diverse community college student population. Community college faculty members are faced with complex classrooms with learners of all different ages, races, cultures and academic preparedness. As…

Dual language education programs are highly beneficial for literacy and academic language development with all students, especially those who are English learners. School districts nation-wide are attempting to expand K-12 dual language programs, yet teaching and learning for biliteracy development are highly complex processes, especially with…

Performance-based funding (PBF) models intend to increase efficiency and productivity of the institution, thereby influencing organizational change. This change may be structural, programmatic, or procedural, and it may affect institutional practice and/or policy. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand the organizational…

Because data access may be perceived by principals as overwhelming or irrelevant rather than helpful (Wayman, Spikes, & Volonnino, 2013), data access does not guarantee effective data use. The data-based decision making literature has largely focused on teacher use of data, considering less often data-based organizational improvements for the…

In this issue, editor Amara G. Hark-Weber speaks with two practicing artists who teach in very different programs and settings at college level. The first works with individuals who want to make a career out of their craft. Terry Gess is a potter in Western North Carolina who maintains his own practice and studio while also teaching at Haywood…