Insufficient referral and participation in Part C Early Intervention (EI) services are common among children aged birth to 3 years, including those automatically eligible due to diagnosed medical conditions. States have established lists of diagnosed medical conditions to streamline eligibility determination for these children. However, there is…

Managing student misbehavior at school is a reality today's school staff must be prepared for. Researchers and practitioners have been implementing a variety of strategies to support students with challenging behavior; however, the opportunity gap for specific students continues to exist. The number of students who are excluded, suspended, or…

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…

In compliance with The Every Student Succeeds Act, many states report "chronic absenteeism" as an indicator of student success. While chronic absenteeism is prevalent across the country, marginalized youth experience differential rates compared to their White peers. The disproportionate overrepresentation of marginalized youth is partly…

America spends $115,000 per-pupil on education, one of the highest in the world. Even with high funding being provided for the educational budget, standardized state assessment scores are not reflecting the aim for higher quality of education that NCLB is trying to accomplish. Teachers use an assortment of assessments to gauge student's mastery…

Changes in Washington State law require all school districts to adopt policies and procedures concerned with student reengagement. This dissertation describes the action research undertaken in the Mead School District to address requirements of the new law to successfully reenter students after being absent due to exclusionary discipline. The…

Over the last 37 years, the Individualized Education Program (IEP) has been the guiding document that outlines the needs of a student who receives special education services. Washington State utilizes an IEP Review form as the means to determine if an IEP has been properly written and formulated. This information partially fulfills the Federal…

Scholarship programs authored by state legislatures may conflict with a state's constitution. In the case of "Locke v. Davey" 540 U.S. 807 (2003), Joshua Davey challenged the State of Washington's withdrawal of his Promise Scholarship claiming violation of his First Amendment rights under the United States Constitution. This…

The No Child Left Behind Act (2001) increased the federal presence in the test-based accountability movement with its goal of all children meeting standard by 2014. To measure progress toward this goal, each state created a series of intermediate goals. Schools or districts that attained the goal for a given year in 9 different subgroups made…

This study provides a descriptive analysis of teacher evaluation documents used in the state of Washington in 2010-2011. The purpose of the research was to understand what documents were used, differences and similarities from district to district, and the extent to which they conformed to state administrative rules and what the literature argues…

This qualitative study was designed to gain an in-depth understanding of the perceptions, attitudes, knowledge, and implementation of RTI based on interviews with 11 special education directors working in rural school districts in eastern Washington. Three questions guided this study. First, what level of general knowledge of the RTI process do…

No Child Left Behind has increased the demand for evidence of student achievement in America's public schools. As a result, the importance of the role of superintendent as instructional leader has increased. Some superintendents have responded to this demand by mandating that principals increase their presence in classrooms; yet, research on…