Career-connected learning is an educational strategy that combines high-quality academic instruction, skill-based learning, and real-world experiences to prepare students with the knowledge and skills that they need to pursue their career goals. Career-connected learning is especially important for an often-overlooked group of students including…

Career-connected learning is an educational strategy that combines high-quality academic instruction, skill-based learning, and real-world experiences to prepare students with the knowledge and skills that they need to pursue their career goals. Career-connected learning can be delivered in a variety of ways, including in core content classes,…

There is a growing call to reconsider current approaches to national and state assessment system policies and practices. State and local education agency leaders, educators, community leaders, and advocates have voiced concerns that current state assessment systems--defined primarily by end-of-year multiple-choice tests--are unable to meet…

IDEA policy has opened the door to education for millions of students with disabilities in the United States as well as given them access to a free and appropriate public education. However, IDEA policy continues to navigate the ever-changing challenges that come with educating students with disabilities. This Delphi study took a further look at…

In the past, parents of children with disabilities have spearheaded several policies for individuals with disabilities. However, little is known about their experiences with legislators. To address this gap, focus groups and surveys about legislative advocacy were conducted with 127 parents of individuals with disabilities across four states. The…

Large-scale performance assessment programs are a longstanding reform tool. However, standard setting can be a challenge for assessment programs that use primarily non-standardized assessments. The purpose of this paper is to extend this field of research by explaining the standard setting methodology applied to one more recent instantiation of a…

Disruptions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic introduced opportunities for PK-12 education systems to accelerate evidence-based innovations that may better prepare students to pursue their educational and career goals. Thoughtfully designed pathways--the programs and experiences that students complete to satisfy graduation requirements--can…

Although the Individuals With Disabilities Education Improvement Act (IDEA) mandates parent participation in their children's education programs, the implementation of IDEA results in parent effort beyond participation, specifically, an expectation of advocacy. To date, research on the advocacy expectation is mixed, with some parents perceiving…

"Part I: Are DACA Students Still Safe to Stay?" was originally published in the "New England Journal of Higher Education" on April 25, 2017. Following unsuccessful attempts in Congress to provide a legal pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, including the DREAM Act of 2010, President Obama introduced an executive…

Statewide performance assessments have gone in and out of vogue for over 30 years. While embraced as authentic representations of student work, they often prove burdensome for standardized assessment purposes. They can be a strong addition to a balanced assessment system--when implemented well for the right purposes. State policymakers looking to…

In this brief, the authors illustrate New Hampshire and Vermont's different responses to supporting the early childhood education and care sector during the COVID-19 pandemic and examine the limited publicly available data on pandemic relief funds through the lens of the interstate Upper Valley region. While data limitations preclude the authors…

Addressing the widespread problem of sexual assault in college environments requires both prevention programming and policies addressing sexual misconduct in institutions of higher education. Through the Campus Sexual Assault Policy and Prevention Initiative, nine programs funded by the Office on Women's Health approached this problem within a…

Part C of The Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act, first passed in 1986, created a federal mandate for states to provide early intervention as an entitled service for children from birth to age 3 who are eligible based on delay, disability, or risk factors. Coaching the caregiver (e.g., parent) rather than child-focused therapy…

On a given day, more than 43,000 youths who largely identify as students of color and are disproportionately male are held in residential placement facilities as a result of involvement with the juvenile justice system. More than two-thirds of youths living in placement facilities who participated in a national survey shared aspirations to…

In late 2020, New Hampshire community colleges participated in a national study of community college workforce education. New Hampshire was one of 14 states where education authorities volunteered to encourage colleges to respond early enough in 2020 to receive preliminary statewide results in January 2021. This brief compares New Hampshire to the…