Public high school principals (n = 130) participated in a study comparing extracurricular activities available at high schools located in poverty areas with extracurricular activities available at high schools not located in poverty areas. Results indicated that high schools in poverty areas are, in general, characterized by fewer extracurricular…

Public schools in the state of Texas are required by the Texas Education Agency to administer five state exams to high school students consisting of Algebra I, Biology, English I, English II, and U.S. History. These exams play a big role in school accountability and in high school graduation. For this reason, many schools develop intervention…

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact of hunger on school participation in Title 1 high school seniors. The study was conducted in a large urban Title I school district in Texas where the majority of the population falls into a lower socioeconomic group. The guiding question states, "Can hunger caused by food insecurity cause…

With the introduction of key federal, state, and local legislation that has placed an ever-increasing emphasis on improving overall school academic performance, it has become vitally important for educational leaders to explore any and all methods that may positively impact the academic outcomes of their respective educational institutions. While…

Many educational systems are generally viewed across the United States as failing to meet the increased demand of preparing an educated workforce to sustain the nation's economy and overall citizen way of life. One such failing is represented in the number of students not completing high school. To address the systemic dropout problem, federal and…

The purpose of this study is to analyze the relationship between the 9th grade state assessment test scores for Disadvantaged Hispanic students who are taking the English I State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness End-of-Course exam. The group analyzed was comprised of the 2016-2017 cohort students from a South Texas High School. [The…

This study examined the effects of extracurricular absences on final grades and State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness (STAAR) End-of-Course (EOC) scores. A multiple regression test was run to determine whether there was a significant relationship between the grades of students with extracurricular absences and their STAAR EOC scores.…

With today's greater focus on preparing students for college and careers, the Center on Standards and Assessment Implementation (CSAI) recently conducted a review of the coursework that states are requiring students to complete in order to receive a high school diploma, and of what diploma options are available for students in each state. This…

Students attending suburban and rural schools face obstacles that make dropping out of school a viable option for them. The need for schools to find strategies that will keep students in school is critical. One strategy that is successful in keeping student interested in school is participation in sports. As the leaders of sports' teams, coaches…

This study was designed to investigate the influence of student participation in extracurricular activities, as perceived by rural high school principals, with successful extracurricular programs. Participating principals were asked about their perceptions on the influence of student participation in extracurricular activities on student…

We investigated the effect of participating in two domains of extracurricular activities (sports and performance arts/clubs) in Grades 7 and 8 on Grade 9 academic motivation and letter grades, above baseline performance. Participants were 483 students (55% male; 33% Euro-American, 25% African American, and 39% Latino). Propensity score weighting…

An exploratory study of applicants who rejected admission to the Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science (TAMS) is described in this article. TAMS is a residential early college entry program at the University of North Texas in Denton. Up to 600 mathematically talented sophomores apply to TAMS each year and among the 200 selectees, a predictable…

In Part III of the feature, physical educators and adapted physical educators offer current best practices as models of implementation for readers. Contributions included are: (1) Answer to the Dear Colleague Letter from the Anchorage School District's Adapted Sport Program (David Poulin); (2) Georgia's Adapted Physical Educators Response to the…

Newcomer students who arrive in the secondary grades face daunting challenges in order to achieve desired academic outcomes such as high school graduation and college access. Besides simultaneously developing conceptual understandings analytical and linguistic practices, newcomers also need to adapt to a new country, a new schooling system, and a…

The Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science (TAMS) is a publicly financed, residential early college entrance institute at the University of North Texas at Denton. Created in 1987, TAMS enables high-achieving students planning STEM careers to complete their last 2 years of high school simultaneously with their first 2 years of college. Admission…