Academic development that supports the enactment of positive psychology practices through student-faculty pedagogical partnership can increase faculty confidence and capacity in their first year in a new institution. When student partners practice affirmation and encouragement of strengths-based growth, processes of faculty acclimation and…

The purpose of this qualitative study is to understand how operating models and organizational structure impact the effectiveness of higher education institutions for students, faculty, administrators and the broader community. In this case study, the researcher uses the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award Criteria (MBNQAC) to understand core…

Driven by new digital technologies, the future of learning is increasingly interactive, individualized, and full of real-world experiences and information. Unfortunately, the average school has about the same connectivity as the average American home, but serves 200 times as many users, and fewer than 20 percent of educators say their school's…

The purpose of this qualitative single case embedded exploratory case study was to investigate high school inclusion co-teachers' perceptions of the shared planning process when developing lesson plans for "Agile Mind" (2015) and to determine how teachers work to do this within the constructs of the online scripted curriculum. The…

Within an increasingly more competitive landscape, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are becoming more marketized and promotionalized. Brand building is becoming a strategic administrative goal, yet clear brand management models are lacking. This paper utilizes the Brand Flux Model™ to assist in tracking the fluxing nature or historical…

Strategic planning is critical to ensuring that institutions of higher education thoughtfully and systematically position themselves to accomplish their mission, vision, and strategic goals, particularly when these institutions face a myriad of risks that can negatively impact their continued financial viability and compromise their ability to…

This study examines if practices that advocate for 21st century skills are in conflict with the mandates of NCLB. Interviews with influential school leaders of high achieving elementary schools focused on collecting data about 21st century skills. This study was designed to (a) Determine if 21st century skills are addressed in high achieving…

Context: Research increasingly suggests that the high school diploma has lost its meaning as a symbol of life preparation. Having faced economic struggles earlier and longer than most regions of the United States, the "Rust Belt" region offers important lessons for the broader nation regarding how high schools might prepare youth for…

The field of higher education attracts many talented, ambitious professionals who are inspired to work in this sector because of opportunities to support the academic, personal, and professional development of students. It is an irony that more attention is not paid to the professional and leadership development of administrative talent in…

Schools have gone through educational reforms having various focuses on curriculum changes, consolidation, open classrooms, mastery learning, decentralization, shared decisionmaking, legislative mandates and controls, high expectations, integrated thematic instruction, professional development, technology integration, and standards with…

This book demonstrates through case studies and expert analyses the impressive educational gains children can make when the best educational research, policy, and practice are aligned. This volume is a valuable resource to aspiring leaders, educational researchers, and current practitioners and a must-read for anyone who cares about the public…

This report summarizes the activities and findings of the external evaluation of the "Science: It's Elementary" (SIE) program during the period from July 2009 through June 2010. The SIE program is managed by ASSET Inc. and overseen by the Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE). SIE is an initiative aimed at improving elementary…

The original mission of the state and land-grant university was to engage with communities to solve problems and improve the quality of life for the citizenry. Today most state and land-grant universities have moved far away from their original mission and are struggling to become engaged with the communities they serve. In this case study, we…

This report provides an evaluation of the Online at PA Libraries project which was initiated in the Fall of 1996 by the Pennsylvania Department of Education's Office of Commonwealth Libraries and the Schuylkill Intermediate Unit. The report documents that the following goals were accomplished: (1) provide public access to the Internet through…

A three-year project was conducted in Pennsylvania to design and implement a comprehensive model evaluation management information and policy support unit within the state vocational rehabilitation (VR) agency. Five mandated project tasks were carried out to produce products that are necessary for program evaluation (PE). Proposed Federal…