The marketization of U.S. schools has increasingly complicated and even undermined the democratic aims of education, causing many to argue that democratic and market ideologies are fundamentally opposed. This meta-ethnographic study uses conceptual tools from democratic theory and the research on civic education to investigate how leaders in one…

In the last two years, the nation's workforce development boards have focused on job training and placement in the face of many challenges related to the changing labor market, a global pandemic, and an economic shutdown. The Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) spoke with five workforce development board directors from across the…

The past year highlighted and heightened California's key challenges. Millions of Californians lost jobs and income during the COVID-19 crisis; low-income families, communities of color, and women were hit hardest. As schools and universities shifted rapidly to remote learning, educators and parents scrambled to provide all students with…

The Obama Administration has helped articulate the important role community colleges play in educating the nation's workforce and boosting the economy. With a large share of projected job openings requiring college education of less than a bachelor's degree and offering family-supporting wages, the nation's community colleges can make a huge…

In its recent report, the Governor's Committee on Education Excellence proposes a major restructuring of California's school finance system, replacing most of the separate programs through which revenue now flows from the state to local school districts with a base program and a targeted program. The base program would serve the educational needs…

A study examined the views of a sample of Los Angeles area employers concerning the utility of vocational education. During the study, researchers surveyed a group of employers from a predominantly nonwhite, relatively poor section of downtown Los Angeles and a group of employers from the fast-growing, affluent, predominantly white, planned…

These statements by 19 of California's government, business, and educational leaders address the need to adapt California's schools and colleges to the rapid changes occurring in the State's economy and society. They have a common theme: government, business, and educational initiative and cooperation are needed if California is to retain its…

This policy brief examines programs from California and elsewhere in the United States for attracting and retaining quality preschool and child-care staff and places these programs within the broader context of K-12 reforms. While this brief is specifically aimed at early-childhood-education planners and policymakers, it contains information for…

This collection of conference papers includes: (1) "Using Market Forces to Make Title I More Effective" (Marci Kanstoroom and Tyce Palmaffy); (2) "Making Economically Grounded Decisions about Comprehensive School Reform Models: Considerations of Costs, Effects, and Contexts" (Jennifer King Rice); (3) "Does Title I Money…

Demographic, social, and economic factors are shaping the future environment and clientele of California's adult education system. Continued population growth means adult education will have to serve larger populations. Direct implications of increasing ethnic and racial pluralism are demands for more flexible delivery systems that accommodate…

Officials in charge of California's community colleges and universities worked with an advisory committee consisting of representatives of two- and four-year public and independent colleges to develop a plan to ensure an adequate nursing workforce for California. The group reviewed existing nursing education programs, trends in the health care…