The importance of education for individual well-being, social cohesion and economic growth is widely accepted by researchers and policymakers alike. Yet there exist vast numbers of people around the world, largely poor, who continue to lag behind wealthier people, often within their own nations. Conditional cash transfer programs were created to…

Since the passage of The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, a superintendent's role has been redefined and more focus has been placed on student achievement. Research demonstrates that rural public schools are faced with an educational crisis. Rural districts are faced with an epidemic of declining enrollments/budgets, increased drop-out rates, low…

This study assessed the effects of a modified version of Check & Connect, a comprehensive student engagement intervention, on the attendance, behavior, and academic performance of secondary African American females with violent and aggressive behavior problems. In addition, the Student Engagement Instrument (SEI) was used to assess cognitive…

This case study evaluated one site of a California teacher home visit program. Home visits have been an important means of connecting families and schooling. In 1999, California inaugurated a statewide home visit program to promote effective partnership between home and school for low-achieving schools. At this site, families in 3 kindergarten…

The 1997 Nebraska Legislature enacted Bill 806 to promote school consolidation, which legislators believed would lead schools to become more cost-efficient and provide a significantly larger curriculum. This legislative action begged the question: Has the move to consolidate schools made Nebraska schools more efficient while providing greater…

Research suggests that voluntary activity accounts for 40% of individual happiness and can be purposefully manipulated to make meaningful changes in one's reported level of happiness (Lyubomirsky, Sheldon, & Schkade, 2005a; Tkach & Lyubomirsky, 2006). The current study explored the utility of a school-based positive psychology psychoeducation…