In some instances, a local school district may determine that it cannot provide free appropriate public education (FAPE) for a student with a disability within their district. In partnership with the student's family and teachers, the district may decide that the student would be best served in a private school or facility better suited to meet…

In this dissertation, I analyze the development and dissemination of state-level policies to prohibit colleges from considering criminal history for purposes of admissions otherwise known as ban the box in higher education. This research engages with practical and instructive questions of how individuals or coalitions can learn from other policy…

High-quality career and technical education (CTE) programs represent an effective way to provide young adults with an educational experience that prepares them for both college and career success. But not all CTE programs provide accessible pathways to a bounty of educational options without dead ends. To address the false dichotomy--college…

The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) is required, under Engrossed Second Substitute Senate Bill (E2SSB) 5315 (2023), to submit an annual report to the Legislature regarding the placement of students receiving special education services at entities known as nonpublic agencies (NPAs). As of December 2023, there are 94 NPAs…

The federal "Every Student Succeeds Act" (ESSA) has stimulated states to revisit school improvement. Previously, the Center analyzed ESSA and the related consolidated state plans using the lens of how the federal legislation and state plans address barriers to learning and teaching and re-engage disconnected students. Such analyses…

This research builds a narrative of a nationwide study on tuition waiver and tuition assistance programs. The authors administered a survey to long-standing and newly implemented tuition waiver programs within universities that identified limitations and opportunities. The purpose of this study is to highlight the varied approaches to…

The bachelor's degree remains a fundamental path to economic opportunity in the United States. Critical for policymakers, then, is ensuring equitable access to such benefits--a task often constrained by long-standing structural barriers. One of the most obvious structural impediments for bachelor's degree-aspirants in California (CA) is the…

Substitute Senate Bill (SSB) 5357, passed in 2017, requires the Washington state Department of Early Learning (DEL) to establish a four year pilot project to license "outdoor, nature-based early learning and child care programs," otherwise known as outdoor preschools. This report covers DEL's efforts to date and details the department's…

Work-based learning faces significant changes in delivery in the face of a global pandemic that has severely limited physical access to schools and businesses. These changes have forced school leaders and employers to acknowledge pre-existing inequities that perpetuate historical barriers and racial discrimination and keep marginalized learner…

Researchers suggest that the economy of the future will consist of jobs that do not currently exist, there will likely be a shortage of individuals with necessary education and credentials to fill those jobs, and if the nation does not produce this workforce, there will likely be a $1.72 trillion loss in productivity by 2030. Considering these…

When the nation shut down in March because of the COVID-19 pandemic, states had to figure out what education would look like for the remainder of the academic year. These abrupt changes affected not only students' ability to learn but also their access to the support system that would help prepare them for steps beyond high school. This Policy…

This guidance focuses on how school districts in Washington state can plan and respond to the challenges of the 2020-21 school year, specific to closing equity gaps in dual credit access and success and postsecondary transitions. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the significant inequities inside of education systems that districts across the…

2017 saw every legislature in the West in session--including the 15 Western states, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Guam--with legislators addressing a diverse array of higher education topics and dealing with an equally wide variety of budgetary outlooks. As in past years, Western states featured some of the largest…

This brief summarizes a study of five school districts that have been recognized for their efforts to provide high-quality services to students experiencing homelessness. The districts worked hard to identify students experiencing homelessness and supplemented modest federal funds with private funding, district funding, community-based resources,…

Many Virginians aspiring to earn a four-year degree intentionally begin their journey at one of the 23 community colleges within the Virginia Community College System (VCCS). In concert with those aspirations, the VCCS is committed to providing its residents an affordable and accessible program of study that prepares them to transfer and earn a…