Middle school is a natural time for students to learn about careers and develop skills such as problem solving, critical thinking and teamwork through career exploration activities. This report from the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) examines different approaches to supporting career exploration in middle school and…

TransferBOOST (Bachelor's Opportunity Options that are Straightforward and Transparent) is a multi-year state-level initiative developed to provide students with affordable, quality, well-supported two- to four-year pathways. Affordability matters a great deal for transfer students, but it has typically not been understood or prioritized. The IHEP…

Fluctuations in state funding present a tremendous challenge to the well being of Virginia public higher education institutions and the state's students and families. On a per-student basis, general fund appropriations declined by 49.6% ($5,909) on average at the four year-institutions and by 46.6% ($2,550) at the Virginia Community College System…

Hundreds of U.S. schools will supplement fire drills and tornado training next fall with simulations of school shootings. In response to the December shootings by an intruder at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, several states have enacted or are considering laws that require more and new types of school safety drills, more…

The deterioration of public school buildings is more prevalent in large cities that, because of funding shortfalls, have deferred maintenance and require huge sums to bring their buildings up to acceptable standards. Cities such as New York will require approximately $680 million to address the problem of deferred maintenance for needed painting,…

Teacher residency programs are a relatively new method for building stronger teacher pipelines. Research assessing the impact of these programs is still limited, but some early reports suggest that residency programs hold promise for improving teacher effectiveness and retention rates (Barrett, Hovde, Hahn, & Rosqueta, 2011; Papay, West,…

The business models under which most public universities in the U.S. operate have become unsustainable. They were put in place when state economies were stronger and there were fewer programs making competing claims on state funds. The current Great Recession has made things worse, but the unsustainability of current business models derives from…

The education headlines have been filled with grim news about facility closings, teacher layoffs and program cutbacks. When the economic climate is gloomy, few areas of schools and universities are spared. In areas outside the classroom, such as safety and security, the cuts may be larger and come more quickly. When money is scarce, education…

This toolkit is designed to help community schools evaluate their efforts so that they learn from their successes, identify current challenges, and plan future efforts. It provides a step-by-step process for planning and conducting an evaluation at your community school site(s). The toolkit is a practical, hands-on guide that makes it possible for…

In the first of the two addresses presented in this publication, George Vaughan examines trends likely to influence the development of community colleges in the United States. He predicts: (1) the increased representation of women, minorities, part-time, and older students will continue; (2) increased competition with higher education institutions…

This publication is part of a series of tools and resources on financing and sustaining youth programming. These tools and resources are intended to help policymakers, program developers, and community leaders develop innovative strategies for implementing, financing, and sustaining effective programs and policies. This strategy brief presents a…

This document outlines long-range plans for Virginia's Head Start program. The first section provides an introduction to the Head Start program, including a program description and information on eligibility, funding, and children served. Next, Virginia's Head Start program is covered, including a program description and information on…

This analysis of the community was designed to identify the needs of its citizens so that the Washington County Public Library could plan more responsive library services. Sections described the physical and historical aspects of the community; demographic characteristics of its population, including age, sex, education, employment status and…

Because resources from the federal government will continue to diminish, and because rising costs and inflation could make quality child care services more scarce and expensive than they are at present, it is crucial to examine new alternatives for meeting child care needs in the 1980's. Dramatic changes in the structure of the American family in…

The Task Force on Continuing Education and Non-Credit Instruction was appointed to develop specific strategies for expanding lifelong learning and non-credit instruction in the Virginia community colleges. The task force reviewed a report on the state funding of non-credit instruction; wrote to the community college coordinating offices in 17…