We review the effectiveness of first-year seminars based on the widely used criteria of first-year grades and the 1-year retention rate. Meta-analytic results indicate that first-year seminars have a small average effect on both first-year grades (k = 89, N = 52,406, d = 0.02) and the 1-year retention rate (k = 195, N = 169,666, d = 0.11). We…

This study focused on the association between 3 school-level supports for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students and teachers' knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors toward LGBT youth. Framed within social support theory, the study used survey method with a sample of 98 teachers in Grades 6-12. The purpose was to examine the relation…

Background/Context: Founded in 1974 by James Gray and a group of teacher colleagues who came together as the Bay Area Writing Project in California, the National Writing Project is a professional development network that has spread from one site to 197 university-based sites across the U.S. After such a long period of time in operation, it becomes…

In the last few years, peer programs have grown in popularity around the country, supported by a growing body of research and the rewards of seeing teenagers' lives changed. Elementary peer programs, with their different set of typical issues, schedule demands, and personnel availability, are certainly different from their middle- and high-school…

The iMentor College Ready Program combines school-based mentoring with technology and aspects of whole school reform, in an effort to improve students' college readiness. The program matches low-income youth with college-educated mentors and aims to help them develop close relationships through online communication and monthly in-person events,…

Too many young people are not on meaningful college or career pathways at a time when the workforce increasingly demands a higher level of education and skills. While a lack of education is a major barrier to employment, there are not enough alternatives to the one-size-fits-all high school to college trajectory that leaves 60% of Americans…

As school districts and communities struggle to increase civic engagement for their students, a medium-sized suburban school district implemented required community service hours as part of their high school graduation requirements. The purpose of this qualitative program evaluation was to investigate how the community service program was meeting…

The purpose of this program evaluation was to examine the four components of the CIPP evaluation model (Context, Input, Process, and Product evaluations) in the diversity training program conceptualization and design delivered to College of Education K-12 preservice teachers at a large university in the southeastern United States (referred to in…

Although LGBTQ youth are at risk for peer rejection, substance abuse, mental health disorders, and dropping out of school, research shows that most mental health training programs do not include a course on working with this population (Carroll & Gilroy,2001; Matthews, 2005; McCabe & Rubinson, 2008;Sherry, Whilde, & Patton, 2005;…

Peer mentoring is often considered the single most effective strategy for increasing student retention and student satisfaction. As a consequence, mentoring programs have been implemented at most universities and are an essential feature of best practice transition programs. Yet, the literature is inconsistent regarding what the term entails and…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine how school-based sexuality education has had a long and troubled history of exclusionary pedagogical practices that have negatively affected such populations as lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer (LGBTQ) individuals, people of color, and the disabled. The social ecological model is introduced as a…

Economic pressures for public health and human services systems to control budgets are increasing the need for demonstrating value of support services provided to persons with intellectual disabilities. In this article, we build from earlier work that presented a method for assessing goal attainment to expand the study of goal characteristics as a…

During the past few decades, faculty developers within the United States and internationally have steadily become more aware of the need to do a better job of assessing their programs. They are part of institutions of higher education that are also growing more aware that they not only need to "support" learning by professors and students but they…

In this article we share the impact of a training program (Positive Space I and Positive Space II) on pre-service teachers' understandings of and abilities to create safe spaces for Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Transgendered and Queering/Questioning (LGBTQ) youth and allies in our teacher-education program and in schools. Research has demonstrated…

The Problem: The purpose of this study was to explore the association between the knowledge competencies and the job tasks among Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialists (CTRS) who are working with the senior population in the State of California by asking the following questions: (1) To what extent are CTRS using the principle of group…