The emergence of new credentials is changing the landscape of traditional post-secondary education. The tight labor market's rising demand to fill vacancies in high-demand career fields such as cybersecurity has led to so-called "alternative credentials" to rapidly upskill and reskill existing professionals to move into the industry.…

Anecdotal evidence points to the importance of school principals, but the limited existing research has neither provided consistent results nor indicated any set of essential characteristics of effective principals. This paper exploits extensive student-level panel data across six states to investigate both variations in principal performance and…

One only needs to listen to the news reports to recognize that the gap between securing the enterprise and cybersecurity threats, breaches, and vulnerabilities appears to be widening at an alarming rate. An untapped resource to combat these attacks lies in the students of the secondary educational system. Necessary in the cybersecurity education…

National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) student-athletes represent a unique subculture on college campuses, and the athlete must balance the rigors of coursework, athletics, and the non-traditional dynamics associated with being an athlete, which include "dumb jock" stereotypes, isolation, negative criticism, and the fear…

This study was designed to investigate response ratings for the value of computer skills, the value of Microsoft Office Specialist Certifications, which participant and/or business qualities impact the desire for given computer skills and Microsoft Office Specialist Certifications, and the employability skills employers desire. Data were analyzed…

This European Training Foundation (ETF) assessment provides an external, forward-looking analysis of Georgia's human capital development issues and vocational education and training (VET) policy responses from a lifelong learning perspective. It identifies challenges related to education and training policy and practice that hinder the development…

This report examines how technology and automation are changing the job market -- and what states can do to prepare adults for the new workplace. It analyzes shifts from low- to middle-skills jobs, details current education levels, and offers recommendations for retooling adult education programs.

The world is undergoing a major transformation that requires new skills and qualifications, new ways for people to know about skills and qualifications, and new ways to acquire skills and qualifications. This toolkit is about skills and qualifications, and the benefits they provide for people in a changing environment. It focuses specifically on…

America and the South seem to have turned a corner on the deep and prolonged recession that started in 2008. The stranglehold it has had on jobs and job prospects caught many by surprise, and it has caused education leaders to refocus state policy on the relationship between career preparation and education. This report provides updates on the…

Paraeducators perform multiple roles in U.S. classrooms, including among others preparing classroom activities, working with students individually and in small groups, supporting individualized programming for students with disabilities, managing classroom behavior, and engaging with parents and communities. Yet, little research provides insights…

On May 3, 2016, House Bill (HB) 879--the Georgia Seal of Biliteracy--was signed into law by Governor Nathan Deal and went into effect on July 1, 2016. Outside of the language education sphere, many educators and policymakers may not fully understand the benefits of studying other languages. Yet, this policy hinges on the utility of simultaneously…

Integrated Event Design (IED) capitalizes on three distinct courses to achieve a blended course delivery: Event Management, Research and Evaluation (for undergraduate students), and Experiential Education (for graduate students). Through the use of an event management company metaphor that fully integrates the diverse curricular concepts, course…

Communities face powerful challenges--a high-school dropout epidemic, youth unemployment, teen pregnancy--that require powerful solutions. In a climate of increasingly constrained resources, those solutions must help communities to achieve more with less. A new kind of community collaborative--an approach that aspires to significant,…

This Evidence Based Education (EBE) response describes characteristics of graduation coach initiatives in three states (Georgia, Alabama, and California). Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Southeast has received over 19 requests for information on various initiatives, programs or research related to improving graduation rates. For example, the…

While college enrollment rates have increased over the last 40 years, gaps still exist across groups. College enrollment rates are lower for high school graduates whose parents have not attended college, those with low-incomes, as well as Black and Latino/a students than for other high school graduates. One source of differences across groups in…