This article features the Dysart Unified School District in Surprise, Arizona and discusses how the district developed a long-term professional development plan. The authors present an example that highlights what is becoming common practice in the district: supporting teachers through differentiated, job-embedded professional learning, using…

This study investigated the transition experiences of youth with special health care needs (YSHCN). Fifty-five YSHCN completed a phone survey, which asked about their educational and vocational goals, current health care (e.g., access to adult care providers, health insurance, medications), life experiences (exercise, doing chores, cooking, types…

This report on the FY 1989-92 LSCA (Library Services and Construction Act) Long Range Program for library development in Arizona begins by describing the purpose of the program and the methodology used in its development, i.e., a review and analysis of past statewide library plans, and structured group meetings with librarians throughout the state…

The problem of how best to plan for Arizona's future is approached from two different angles. First, an outline is presented of 10 key assumptions regarding the most likely scenario for the United States in the 1980's. Assumptions are that there will be an unstable international environment but no nuclear war; fiscal conservatism in all areas of…

This fourth annual publication looks at five trends that threaten Arizona's future: (1) a talent shakeup where well-educated young professional and highly skilled immigrants leave the states; (2) the Latino education dilemma, manifest by the fact that only half of Arizona Latinos obtain a high-school diploma; (3) a fuzzy economic identity…

During the summer of 1993, site-visit teams visited Arkansas, Arizona, Maryland, New Jersey, and Oregon to interview the Child Care Development Block Grant (CCDBG) lead agency staff about each state's child care management information system (MIS). The state information work group and experts recommended states with innovative, unique, and…

One of the working papers in the final report of the Arizona Board of Regents' Task Force on Excellence, Efficiency and Competitiveness, this document focuses on the normal and documented activities that could be described as leading to strategic choices and implementation efforts in the Arizona universities. The strategic planning literature is…

Three instances of the use of policy analysis in different areas of university planning and decision making are used to illustrate the elements of policy analysis: its tools (iterative activity, intuition/judgment, field testing); problem diagnosis; and examination of the roles played by four components (policy issue, environment, implementation,…

Although community colleges both in Arizona and throughout the United States are well-placed for the future, serious challenges do exist. Property taxes, the primary vehicle for funding in Arizona, face an uncertain future, while the advent of the Internet and the imminent availability of interactive cable television raise questions about how…

The Phoenix Public Library's Special Needs Center (SNC) has provided service to disabled patrons and professionals who serve the disabled community for over 10 years. Determined to stay abreast of changing needs, the SNC initiated a needs assessment project which included staff, professionals, and patrons. The purposes of the needs assessment were…

This paper provides recent information concerning policies in other states relevant to California's efforts to direct undergraduate students toward in-state private colleges and universities or out-of-state institutions, thus relieving the enrollment burden on the state's publicly supported institutions. The primary database for the analysis is a…

One of the working papers in the final report of the Arizona Board of Regents' Task Force on Excellence, Efficiency and Competitiveness, this document looks at ways to approach future changes in Arizona, focusing on how they will affect the higher education needs of the state. It is important to consider long term outlooks in order to better…

This paper addresses the issue of what business leaders can do to help schools prepare the workforce of tomorrow. As the pace of change in American businesses quickens and their communities broaden, the need to recruit both a highly skilled and diverse workforce increases. Businesses should take more responsibility for setting employment…

Arizona's career ladder teacher incentive program was established by the Arizona State Legislature in 1984 as a component of school restructuring efforts. A comprehensive and long-range developmental evaluation system is being developed for the restructuring program, but the program is at risk of being eliminated due to the negative influence of…

One of the working papers in the final report of the Arizona Board of Regents' Task Force on Excellence, Efficiency and Competitiveness, this document focuses (in Part I) on the summary, conclusions, and recommendations of future changes and their relationship to the Arizona Universities; and, (in Part II) provides background materials for…