Rural schools face particular challenges with teacher quality. The Northeast Tennessee College and Career Ready Consortium was a collaborative reform effort among rural schools with a key goal of improving the quality of instruction in math and science to support its efforts to expand academically rigorous courses. This study examines progress…

Regional planning has been proposed as a method for dealing with the various societal problems which cross local boundaries and which can be dealt with better in a wider geographic or regional context. The report of the California Postsecondary Education Commission is based on interviews, review of the existing literature, and visits to regional…

The long-term planning concerns of colleges and universities have been shifting in recent years. Emphasis is increasingly being placed on the exploitation of all higher education resources through regional or state coordination, and on the adjustment of services to the changing educational and vocational needs of society. The Ninth Annual…

Existing data indicate that there is a serious gap between the statewide needs and demands of Michigan citizens for off-campus instructional services and the present pattern of services being provided by Michigan colleges and universities. It is also apparent that there is a need for more complete information on existing programs and about the…

A study was conducted to define a set of alternative organizational models to help overcome current obstacles to Vocational-Technical Education Consortium of States (V-TECS) membership and set the stage for maximum utilization of the cost efficiencies and program improvement benefits of collaborative curriculum development. The methodology…

This final report describes the plan developed by the Northern Illinois Learning Resources Cooperative, a consortium of 44 community colleges and other academic institutions, which was awarded a Library Services and Construction Act (LSCA) Title III planning grant to research the requirements for a statewide electronic network that would provide…

This study was undertaken to describe efforts in three states to create customized vocational training for specific client firms as part of economic development efforts. Approximately 70 persons from education, business, and state government were interviewed; documents from the three states (Ohio, South Carolina, and New York) were reviewed; and,…

The State University of New York comprises four formal coordinating areas for the development of regional contacts and interinstitutional and regional cooperation. The four coordinating areas have been operating since 1972 and the differing patterns of cooperation that have emerged are outlined as are the formal activities of each area. Only one…

A project was conducted to develop an interagency consortium for Alaska for the purpose of annually identifying and updating the preservice training needs for Alaska vocational educational personnel and to prepare a report on the recommendations from the consortium to be issued to institutions of higher education offering one or more preservice…

The Tech-Prep Statewide Professional Development Consortium of Texas supplemented and complemented professional development activities done within 25 local tech prep consortia to assist in full implementation of the tech prep initiative. Needs analyses identified major areas of emphasis, assessed the current level of tech prep knowledge and…

Designed to provide direction for new and existing programs offered by community colleges in public service occupational education, phase one of the master plan focused on defining the following areas: public service occupational education, present status of programs, problems in articulation, and a conceptual framework for a public service master…

Do state regulatory type agencies for higher education, either consolidated governing boards or coordinating boards, have measurable effects on institutional effectiveness or efficiency? To answer this question three types of information were examined: (1) opinions of the president or delegate representative; (2) data on actual costs that are a…

The role of institutional research in postsecondary education in view of the trend toward consortia, regionalism, and other manifestations of "communiversity" or interinstitutional action is evaluated. Attention is also directed to new modes for policy planning and decision-making. Four activities were conducted in order to better…

In 1993, 473 (55%) of the nation's 855 local tech prep consortia were surveyed regarding tech prep's goals, policies, practices, and obstacles. The 397 responding consortia (response rate, 84%) were sent follow-up surveys in 1995. Responses were obtained from 339 (85%) of the consortia. The follow-up survey revealed the following: increases in the…

Data from national Tech-Prep surveys that were completed by more than 800 Tech-Prep consortium coordinators in fall 1993 and/or fall 1994 were analyzed to assess the emergence of Tech-Prep at the state and local levels. It was discovered that, between 1993 and 1994, the number of Tech-Prep consortia nationwide increased from 812 to 953, the…