One objective of the U.S. Department of Education's (ED) School Improvement Grants (SIG) and Race to the Top (RTT) program is to help states enhance their capacity to support the turnaround of low-performing schools. This capacity may be important, given how difficult it is to produce substantial and sustained achievement gains in low-performing…

In an effort to bring more knowledge about "what works" to educational practitioners, the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) has made significant investments in developing and disseminating focused, rigorous research projects in order to increase the supply of and demand for this research in educational decision making. These efforts…

This Report to Congress is required by Section 658L of the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) Act as amended. The report provides information about the role of the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF), which is authorized under the CCDBG Act, in improving access to high-quality child care in states, territories, and tribes. The data…

YoungStar is a program of the Department of Children and Families (DCF) created to improve the quality of child care for Wisconsin children. YoungStar is designed to: (1) Evaluate and rate the quality of care given by child care providers; (2) Help parents choose the best child care for their kids; (3) Support providers with tools and training to…

On January 3, 1909, Emily Hamilton and Louis Overstreet wrote to President Theodore Roosevelt begging his "leave to work under your Committee for the relief of the sufferers of Italy." The two were engaged and were willing to rush their marriage plans if the president needed them. Their letter was prompted by the powerful earthquake that…

The National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center (NECTAC) Evaluation Unit collects and analyzes data to describe the quantity and nature of the technical assistance services provided by NECTAC staff. The Unit determines the quality and relevance of NECTAC services and products and whether clients use NECTAC Technical Assistance (TA) to…

As part of the third Catholic Higher Education Collaborative Conference (CHEC), an event cosponsored by Boston College and Fordham University, the host university presidents, Rev. William P. Leahy, S. J., and Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S. J., addressed conference attendees and discussed ways higher education institutions can assist Catholic…

This is the second brief in a series, "Building a Post-Care Service System in Child Welfare: Lessons Learned from the Frontlines of Implementation Science in Catawba County." This brief describes how implementation science principles informed technical assistance strategies used in Catawba County to support the full and effective use of…

The National Center on Family Homelessness is determined to end family homelessness. Sheltering families provides a temporary safe haven. Connecting families to permanent housing, essential services, and critical supports can change their lives forever. Through research the Center learns what families need to rebound from the housing, economic,…

Two recent studies by Biancarosa et al. and by Saunders et al. have finally demonstrated that "job-embedded, sustained professional development" can significantly improve student achievement. But there's a catch. In both studies, effective professional development (PD) strategies were successful only under certain circumstances or only in some…

Reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) in 2004 and the IDEA regulations issued in 2006 revised the requirements for identifying students under the category of specific learning disabilities (SLD). Each state must adopt criteria based on the new requirements for determining whether a child has an SLD and local…

This report describes the eLearning Fellowship Program at the University of Jos (UNIJOS), first introduced in October 2008 through a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York and recently adopted by the Partnership for Higher Education in Africa (PHEA) Educational Technology Initiative (ETI). The fellowship is a one-year program aimed at…

The Thomas B. Fordham Institute is the nation's leader in advancing educational excellence for every child through quality research, analysis, and commentary, as well as on-the-ground action and advocacy in Ohio. The institute advances: (1) High standards for schools, students and educators; (2) Quality education options for families; (3) A more…

The Pew Home Visiting Campaign was launched in 2009 by the Pew Center on the States to guide state policymakers toward smart investments in quality, voluntary home-based programs for new and expectant families. In light of the federal development and pressing needs of states, the campaign will assist states in several ways, including policy…

The authors have worked together with the NASP (National Association of School Psychologists) National Emergency Assistance Team (NEAT) for a decade to help coordinate communications around large-scale crisis response efforts. The massive earthquake and tsunami that devastated the northeastern part of Japan and the subsequent response represented…