The Southern Regional Education Board's (SREB) "Challenge to Lead" Goals for Education call for more students to take college admission tests, to score higher on those tests and for SREB states to reduce gaps in test scores among all groups of students. For states, achieving higher statewide scores is one sign that more students can go on to…

In America without excuse every child should start first grade ready to learn. This goal will require that we make high quality preschool available to all 3 and 4 year olds who are at risk of starting first grade behind. Otherwise, gaps in academic achievement between at risk and more affluent children will widen in the first, critically…

No single factor will determine the future quality of life for all residents in Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) states more than whether enough adults earn college degrees and technical certificates. Gone is the dominance of agriculture and manufacturing in most SREB states. These states now must compete in a knowledge economy, but are…

This document is an important companion to the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) report "Getting Serious About High School Graduation." Together, they make powerful statements to policymakers and education leaders about the problems in high schools and what can be done to fix them. Teachers, policymakers, and parents have long agreed that…

Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Tennessee have given all the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) states a new tool to help focus their colleges and universities on state needs. These three states have created plans for their higher education institutions by drawing on leadership from a broad range of state agencies. They identified state needs and…

The "Challenge to Lead" goal for early grades students is first about student achievement in reading and mathematics. The goal is that students in the early grades, regardless of their economic status, school location, ethnicity or gender will be as proficient in reading and mathematics as youngsters anywhere in the nation. "Challenge to Lead"…

This report, Focusing on Student Performance Through Accountability, shows that more students, in all groups, are meeting state standards. And parents, communities and education leaders are better informed about student performance than ever before. It shows that large gaps remain in every state. If the state is to reach the No Child Left Behind…

This Challenge to Lead report, Getting Serious About High School Graduation, not only describes the challenges SREB states face in meeting the goal that all young adults have a high school diploma, but it also provides policies and strategies that each state can--and should--use to get serious about high school graduation. It is possible to adjust…