The vision for musically educating all children in tax-funded schools dates to the early 19th century, at a time when music was initially inserted into the curriculum of common schools. Is that vision being realized today? Why do all children not have equal access to music education by now, regardless of their locations, as per the democratic…

Music educators and clinicians from Ohio and across the country gather annually for the Ohio Music Education Association (OMEA) professional development conference. Dr. Phillip Hash, professor and researcher from Illinois State University, was the featured keynote speaker of the Graduate Research Forum in February 2023. Hash has presented on…

Civics education continues to gain national importance, especially in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election and with recent debates about the teaching of history that addresses the legacy of racism and discrimination in the United States. Despite the increasing interest in strengthening civics education, states continue to differ in…

The Region 8 Comprehensive Center collaborated with the Indiana Department of Education to evaluate the obstacles many districts face in the teacher hiring process. The brief further discusses the importance of hiring timelines, benefits and barriers of early hiring, and recommendations and strategies for revising hiring timelines.

Building stronger relationships between families and schools is increasingly identified as a way to address many vexing issues--teacher shortages, chronic absenteeism, lingering academic and social-emotional effects of COVID-19, and perceived divisions between parents and educators. Because policies and practices around family engagement vary…

High-quality K-12 instructional materials can meaningfully improve teaching practice and student achievement, especially when paired with professional learning support. Yet state policymakers have usually left ultimate authority for textbook selection to school district leaders. Consequently, the quality of materials across U.S. classrooms and…

It is vital that teachers today eschew white supremacy and actively work toward being antiracist in both the content they teach in their classrooms and the ways in which they teach that content, now more than ever before. This paper chronicles the journey that one teacher preparation program has embarked upon to intentionally prepare antiracist…

With the infusion of $45 billion in federal funds through the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Act and Digital Equity Act over the next five years, states are entering a time of opportunity for closing the digital divide for families. However, there is also an urgent need to strengthen their broadband workforce. Without a prepared…

The federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) entitles students with disabilities to a free appropriate public education. Students with disabilities often require additional support to enable them to achieve academic and functional goals relative to their nondisabled peers. These legally protected supports and services all add up…

In rural Appalachian communities of southeast Ohio, where generational poverty is high, communities and schools worked together to both create meaningful learning experiences and ensure that basic needs were met before students started the school year. Families of students who attended Summer Advantage--a 21-day summer school program for…

Registered Apprenticeship and secondary Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs share the common goal of providing students with hands-on training paired with technical, classroom instruction to prepare them for living wage, in-demand careers. When these systems are aligned, they can strengthen one another through a reciprocal relationship.…

"Systems coaching" is used to implement systems-level school improvement initiatives that will build capacity and strengthen infrastructure. In Ohio, the state's regional network of literacy specialists and state support teams for central office and district leaders provided systems coaching to build an infrastructure to support the use…

Ohio policymakers have consistently voiced support for rigorous education standards and ensuring that all students have the knowledge and skills needed to succeed after high school. State leaders have a duty to step in when schools are falling far short of performance standards. Students receiving a substandard education are more likely to…

While about three-fourths of all public school districts offer dual credit opportunities in Career Technical Education (CTE) courses, many programs face gaps in alignment between secondary and postsecondary CTE programs that lead to quality and equity inconsistencies in early postsecondary opportunities (EPSOs) across career pathways, ultimately…

The purpose of this brief is to introduce a developmental framework for states working to systematically integrate evidence-based social and emotional learning (SEL) with career and workforce development efforts. Career and workforce development is a well-known, nonpartisan strategy for preparing students for postsecondary success in schools.…