President Bush's comprehensive education plan includes major initiatives in areas ranging from accountability to school safety. While breaking new ground in some areas, Bush's plan accelerates the progress states have made in improving quality, performance, and flexibility in public education. This status report reviews the progress of states in the areas emphasized by the President. In states across the nation, efforts are underway to strengthen children's readiness for school, make schools safe learning environments, improve the professional development of teachers, and provide a wider array of educational opportunities and choices. Nearly all states have adopted challenging academic standards and measurement tools to attach consequences to performance, but progress remains uneven, and most states are struggling to combine their various efforts in a coherent and effective plan. Although most states have established science and history standards, fewer than half set standards that apply to elementary, middle school, and high school. Many states standards are inadequate in terms of clarity, rigor, and scope. More than half of states test annually in reading and math at two or three grade levels, but only 15 administer annual tests to grades 3-8, as Bush proposes. The Bush plan calls for major changes in NAEP and would require universal participation by states for a sample of 4th and 8th grade students. While most states require public reporting of assessment results, few desegregate data by ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status. This report draws on data from ECS surveys, analyses from 50 states, and government reports. (TEJ)