Although anyone can become a victim, commercial exploitation and human trafficking disproportionately affect women, girls, and communities of color within the United States. Despite its prevalence, misinformation and a widespread lack of understanding on this issue create barriers to identifying and supporting trafficking victims. School staff are…

Nearly 43 million college student borrowers across the United States owe more than $1.56 trillion in outstanding federal student loans. The number of student borrowers in the country has increased by 1.3 million, or 3.1 percent, over the past five years, while the amount of outstanding student debt in the country has increased by a whopping $…

Lawsuits challenging state methods for funding public schools have been launched in 46 of the 50 states, and in recent years they have been extraordinarily successful. Since 1989, plaintiffs have prevailed in over 65 percent of the final liability decisions in cases based on "adequacy claims"--assertions that all students have a…

In this report, the authors examine the many ways Black and Latino students are locked out of the advanced coursework opportunities that can set them up for success in college and careers. Herein, they paint a picture at both national and state levels of how these students are denied access to meaningful advanced coursework opportunities, from…

The goal of safely and sustainably reopening K-12 school buildings for in-person learning is widely recognized as critical to minimizing the impact of academic, social, emotional, and mental strains brought forth by the COVID-19 pandemic. In order for in-person learning to succeed on an ongoing basis, schools must be able to offer safe…

This self-assessment tool was developed for those who wish to embark on state-wide governmental systems change to improve high school transition and employment outcomes for youth and young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Its purpose is to aid in the development of a work plan that is based on a review of the state…

There is growing unease about suspension and expulsion of children at the preschool level. Preschoolers are expelled at three times the rate of K-12 students (Gilliam, 2005). Boys--particularly African-American boys--comprise a disproportionate number of these cases, a fact that has caused concern among parents, policymakers, and advocates alike.…

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) and the Local Control Funding Formula are introducing major changes to California's K-12 system. Implementation of new curricula and instruction is under way at the district level, but California started its transition relatively late and it has taken a more decentralized approach than most other states.…

More than 60 years after the ruling in "Brown v. Board of Education" was handed down, its promise remains unfulfilled. In many respects, America's public schools continue to be "separate and unequal." Indeed, the growing re-segregation of American schools by race and ethnicity, compounded by economic class segregation, has…

Over the last almost two decades, high-stakes testing has become increasingly central to New York's schools. In the 1990s, the State Department of Education began requiring that secondary students pass five standardized exams to graduate. In 2002, the federal No Child Left Behind Act required students in grades three through eight to take math and…

The "Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965" ("ESEA") is the nation's key policy driver for elementary and secondary education, shaping federal, state and district efforts to promote effective school systems and improve educational outcomes, particularly for students in high-poverty schools. The most recent…

Several Race to the Top grantees are considering the development of video libraries as one element of their larger teacher and leader effectiveness reforms. Video libraries promise to offer "real world" examples of teaching practice that can be used for a wide range of purposes: providing teachers with concrete evidence of excellent…

Throughout the United States, administrators and teachers in American high schools face mounting pressure to increase the academic rigor of their curriculum in an effort to prepare students for postsecondary education and workforce success. Career and technical education (CTE) courses have often been overlooked in the public debate about making…

This document presents a summary of the report, "How Eight State Education Agencies in the Northeast and Islands Region Identify and Support Low-Performing Schools and Districts." This larger report describes and analyzes how eight state education agencies in the Northeast and Islands Region (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New…

This report describes and analyzes how eight state education agencies in the Northeast and Islands Region (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, and Vermont) identify and support low-performing schools and districts under the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB). Data collection for the report…