Educators and policymakers have increasingly turned their attention--and $2.8 billion in funding-- to community school strategies as a way to mitigate the learning of the COVID-19 pandemic. A healing-centered community school implements a whole child approach to teaching and learning to address the fundamental physiological and safety needs of…

The Financial Empowerment for Student Success (FESS) Initiative was a two-year initiative focused on increasing student success through the provision of financial services. Achieving the Dream, Inc. and MDC, Inc. joined together, with funding from the Bank of America Charitable Foundation, to support three Achieving the Dream Leader Colleges to…

For several years, WestEd's Measure to Learn and Improve (MLI) project team has kept California state policy leaders informed about the statewide implementation of the California Academic Standards in English language arts and mathematics, by summarizing and disseminating results from the RAND Corporation's annual American Educator Panel (AEP)…

In California, as in many other states across the nation, implementing the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) has been a complex endeavor impacting every public school educator. Not surprisingly, California districts have encountered bumps along the way in their efforts to provide much-needed support to all K-12 teachers as they continue to learn…

In this study, we identified 10 sexuality education programmes from different locations in the USA that aim to give young people knowledge and skills to develop healthy relationships, as well as avoid pregnancy and disease. We conducted in-depth interviews with programme administrators to develop a series of case studies and provide concrete…

The School Improvement Grant (SIG) program funds reforms in low performing schools. Congress provided $3.5 billion for SIG in fiscal year 2009, and a total of about $1.6 billion was appropriated in fiscal years 2010-2012. SIG requirements changed significantly in 2010. Many schools receiving SIG funds must now use the funding for specific…

This article features Strategic School Funding for Results (SSFR) project, a new joint initiative of the American Institutes for Research (AIR) and Pivot Learning Partners (PLP) aimed at improving school finance, human resources, and management systems in large urban school districts. The goal of the project is to develop and implement more…

The California State Library is charged with performing the following activities as defined by law. The State Library, under the direction and control of the State Librarian, an appointee of the Governor, has responsibility: (1) To collect, preserve, generate and disseminate a wide array of information; (2) To serve as the central reference and…

More than ever before, Californians recognize that preschool provides young children with a strong start in school and life. Research confirms that effective preschool not only prepares children for kindergarten, but benefits them in the long-term. Despite the benefits, only 48% of 3- and 4-year-old children attend preschool in California. While…

Response to intervention (RTI) can be both a system for providing early interventions to struggling students and a special education diagnostic tool for evaluating and identifying students with specific learning disabilities. Contributing to the very limited literature on state-level approaches, this report describes how nine states define and…

"After School: Connecting Children at Risk With Responsible Adults to Help Reduce Youth Substance Abuse and Other Health-Compromising Behaviors (After School)" helped develop intermediary organizations in Boston, Chicago and the San Francisco Bay Area in order to create citywide systems of after-school programs. The…

This paper presents a profile of Los Angeles County's Steps to Excellence Project prepared as part of the Child Care Quality Rating System (QRS) Assessment Study. The profile consists of several sections and their corresponding descriptions including: (1) Program Information; (2) Rating Details; (3) Quality Indicators for Center-Based Programs;…

Youth corrections in California is at a crossroads. In response to the near universal recognition of California's failed approach to youth corrections, Governor Schwarzenegger, with support from the California Legislature, has launched one of the largest restructuring initiatives of youth corrections in state history. Reforms currently underway…

The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requires that each state participating in the federal early intervention program establish a state interagency coordinating council (SICC) to assist and advise the state lead agencies in achieving a coordinated service delivery system. Some states have also established local interagency…

In order to achieve the expectations for children's learning stipulated by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, greater attention needs to be given to child care policy and funding. This report details a study examining strategies in seven states that have integrated early education program standards in child care, by directly tying standards to…