In 2006, New Leaders contracted with RAND to conduct an independent evaluation of its principal-preparation program. The analysis included all principals who have been prepared by New Leaders since the inception of the program, comparing outcomes of their students and outcomes of similar students in other, comparable schools in the same districts.…

Purpose of the Study: This study examines (a) the association between being a care recipient and end-of-life care planning (EOLCP) and (b) the extent to which personality traits moderate the relationship between care receipt and EOLCP. Design and Methods: Data are drawn from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study, a survey of Wisconsin high school…

The authors examined whether nonresident fathers provide informal support to their children and whether support stops if their ex-partner goes on to have a child with a new man. A logistic regression analysis of longitudinal survey and administrative data for 434 women who received welfare in Wisconsin showed that fathers are less likely to…

Although evidence-based interventions to reduce underage drinking have been identified, dissemination into "real-world" communities remains challenging. The purpose of this community-based translational research is to test SAMHSA's Strategic Prevention Framework (SPF) as a model for such dissemination and evaluate its effect on alcohol…

Federal policy around supervision and evaluation has prompted state action to develop new evaluation systems to increase student achievement. Systems, such as the Framework for Educator Effectiveness implemented in Wisconsin, are tied to teacher performance as well as student achievement. This type of performance-based evaluation system relies on…

Little is known about the implementation of assistive technology (AT) services for students in rural areas. This study investigated the AT service delivery in 10 rural districts across six states. The results indicated that students use AT across functional areas, but considerably fewer number of devices than do those not living in rural areas. AT…

E-Learning as it pertains to public education is in its infancy in America. There is limited research on what operational design, development, and management attributes of virtual school programs foster student achievement. The Wisconsin Department of Instruction has not developed or adopted program standards for E-Learning programs. The purpose…

Raising evaluation capacity is not an easy task unless the evaluation competence of Extension professionals in each program area is identified. The study reported here identified whether level of knowledge and skills and needs for further training in program evaluation vary for Extension educators based on their program area. A total of 752…

Disparities in academic achievement between students who are under-represented minorities, the first in their families to go to college, and/or low income and their more privileged peers affects students from kindergarten through college. Inequities throughout their education, as well as other causes affect the ability of high school graduates to…

In this study, the authors represent an exploratory investigation of current preparation of preservice teachers related to response to intervention (RTI) in institutions of higher education (IHEs) in the Office of Special Education Program (OSEP) Regional Resource and Federal Centers (RRFCs) North Central Region and Pennsylvania. In this study,…

Founder's Syndrome can create barriers to change in Extension programs. As a result, Extension staff have experienced challenges in effecting organizational change where Founders are present. 4-H Youth Development staff in Wisconsin applied a variety of strategies to move forward with 4-H programming, despite the influence of the Founders. Staff…

This study examines the potential social diffusion effects of the Respecting Choices advance care planning program administered in La Crosse, Wisconsin, since 1991. The program produces educational materials for patients, trains facilitators to help patients prepare for end of life, and ensures that advance directives are connected to patients'…

Results from the 2013 NAEP assessments show fourth- and eighth-graders making progress in mathematics and reading. Nationally representative samples of more than 376,000 fourth-graders and 341,000 eighth-graders were assessed in either mathematics or reading in 2013. Results are reported for public and private school students in the nation, and…

Results from the 2013 NAEP assessments show fourth- and eighth-graders making progress in mathematics and reading. Nationally representative samples of more than 376,000 fourth-graders and 341,000 eighth-graders were assessed in either mathematics or reading in 2013. Results are reported for public and private school students in the nation, and…

This study examined how elementary teacher education programs in the Midwest Environmental Education Conference partner states (Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin) address and assess the competencies set forth by the NAAEE "Guidelines for the Preparation and Professional Development of Environmental Educators". In April 2012,…