The American Association of Community Colleges' (AACC) Plus 50 Initiative (2008-2011), funded by The Atlantic Philanthropies, was created to build the capacity of community colleges nationwide to develop programming that engages the plus 50 learner. The Initiative supported a pilot group of 13 two-year institutions to develop or expand college…

This report contains the results of a survey sent to 2,883 librarians throughout Pennsylvania, both members and nonmembers of the Pennsylvania Library Association (PLA). The nonmembers of PLA were members of the American Library Association (ALA), however. The total response rate was 21% (n=620). There were recurring themes in the responses from…

Results are presented of a survey conducted by the Pennsylvania Department of Education into the development of teaching skills and abilities of recent graduates of performance based teacher preparation programs and into their perceptions of the characteristics of these programs. The survey instrument was divided into two sections. Section One…

Context: An implicit objective of a state's investments in medical education is to promote in-state practice of state educated physicians. Purpose: To present a tool for evaluating this objective by analyzing the "pipeline" from medical education to patient care, primary care, rural areas, and underserved areas in Pennsylvania. Methods:…

Introduction: Mentoring is a central component of professional development. Evaluation of "successful" mentoring programs, however, has been limited and mainly focused on measures of satisfaction with the relationship. In today's environment, mentoring programs must produce tangible outcomes to demonstrate success. To address this issue,…

The National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) documents dimensions of quality in undergraduate education and provides information and assistance to colleges, universities, and other organizations to improve student learning. Its primary activity is annually surveying college students to assess the extent to which they engage in educational…

The present study examined how teachers' psychological experiences of burnout and efficacy as well as perceptions of curriculum supports (e.g., coaching) were associated with their implementation dosage and quality of Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies, a social emotional curriculum. Results revealed that teachers' psychological experiences…

In Pennsylvania 375 public, academic, and special libraries were surveyed in an effort to gather information concerning their interlibrary loan activity during April, 1978; personal discussions with librarians across the state were also conducted. Both sources were used in the development of recommendations for improving bibliographic access. The…

I was interested in whether the inclusion of a service-learning experience would affect students' attitudes and values about the environment. To investigate this question, I incorporated a service-learning project into the laboratory portion of one of the two sections of my non-majors biology course, and kept the lecture portions of the course…

Because service-learning challenges participants to widen perspectives on social issues, we designed and assessed a multi-semester, multidisciplinary project with both academic and service objectives. In this project, undergraduate students developed a script and video centered on a board game designed to educate high-school students about their…

In 1973, the Pennsylvania Environmental Education Advisory Council was charged with surveying the current status of environmental education in the state and preparing recommendations for the development and subsequent implementation of a broad-based environmental education program plan for kindergarten through grade twelve (K-12). The Council was…

The "Gaskin" settlement resulted from a class action lawsuit brought on the behalf of students with significant disabilities in Pennsylvania. With the reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 2004 and the "Gaskin" settlement, schools in Pennsylvania are mandated to increase the placement of…

The role of community agency in the rural community and economic development processes needs to be better understood in America and other advanced, industrialized nations. Community agency is vital to protecting, retaining, and maintaining rural communities. A comparative study was designed to explore the role of community agency in contributing…

In September of 2008, the Pennsylvania Board of Education requested that the Deputy Secretary for Postsecondary and Higher Education in the Department of Education conduct research to document whether, and to what extent, the cost of postsecondary education in the state of Pennsylvania constitutes a significant barrier to college access,…

The purpose of this exploratory study was to examine the use of interim assessments and the policy supports that promote their use to change instruction, focusing on elementary school mathematics. The authors use the term "interim assessments" to refer to assessments that: a) evaluate student knowledge and skills, typically within a…