Every year millions of Americans gain valuable college credit-worthy learning through workplace training, the military, apprenticeships, & professional certifications. Nearly all of this learning goes unrecognized by colleges & universities. Without a consistent way to recognize, reward, and transfer this learning, many people are left…

Recruit, train, reward, retain. These actions sound like the core competencies of a human resources manager or the buzzwords for economic development initiatives aiming to attract Fortune 500 companies. The same principles apply to finding, preparing and retaining effective educators. All 16 Southern Regional Education Board (SREB) states have…

The progressive growth of geriatric facilities as valuable element of the health care system signified for increased services from health care workers particularly Registered Nurses (RNs). A major health care concern could be perceived due to the inadequate number of RNs providing care to elderly patients. Most studies centered on insufficiency of…

Reflecting the growing momentum in support of quality rating and improvement systems (QRISs) as a key strategy to improve early care and education quality, significant amounts of public dollars have been devoted to their development and implementation. In this brief, the authors report on their investigation of both quality rating and improvement…

Created by the U.S. Congress in 2006, the Teacher Incentive Fund (TIF) represents the first federal initiative targeted directly at state and district efforts to introduce performance measures into educator compensation. TIF responds to a growing body of evidence that existing pay structures do not respond to labor force realities or adequately…

SUCCEED (Southeastern University and College Coalition for Engineering Education) is an eight-campus coalition of engineering schools formed in 1992 under the sponsorship of the National Science Foundation. In 1997, a faculty survey of instructional practices and attitudes regarding the climate for teaching on the Coalition campuses was designed…

For nearly four years, governors and state legislators have focused on little else in higher education but cutting budgets to deal with historic gaps in revenue. Now, with higher-education support at a 25-year low, lawmakers are considering some policy changes that have been off-limits in the past, such as consolidating campuses and eliminating…

Building a stronger teacher workforce requires the thoughtful orchestration of multiple processes working together in a human capital system. This white paper presents a framework that can be used to take stock of current efforts to enhance the teacher workforce in school districts or educational organizations, as well as their underlying theories…

Virginia's school funding system is characterized by large inequalities and inadequacy. Disparities are increased when the state fails to pay for the full cost of education, state funding is inadequate, facilities are not state-funded, funding rewards only wealthy localities, and ability to pay is measured inaccurately. (Contains 25 references.)…

In January 2001, the chancellor of the Virginia Community College System (VCCS) appointed a Distance Learning Task Force to develop a distance learning strategic plan. This final report details the Task Force's strategic plan in which they developed a distance learning vision, designed a prospective governance model, defined funding assumptions,…

This paper presents the appendices to the "High-Stakes Testing and Student Achievement: Problems for the No Child Left Behind Act" report. It contains the following appendices: (1) Example of Context for Assessing State-Level Stakes Sheet--Connecticut; (2) Example of Completed Rewards and Sanctions Worksheet--Connecticut; (3) Directions…

This report summarizes a panel discussion among five college administrators who have initiated or taken part in restructuring efforts in their states: Herman Blake, vice chancellor for undergraduate education at Indiana University-Purdue University; Ronald Carrier, president of James Madison University (Virginia); Gordon Davies, director of the…

The purpose of public education in Virginia is to provide children with a quality education giving them opportunities to meet their fullest potential in life. Standards for the accreditation of public schools in Virginia are designed to ensure that an effective educational program is established and maintained in the state public school system.…

This issue of "Reading in Virginia" is intended to provide educators with information on topics related to reading instruction. The contents include: "Look, Move, Read," which discusses a reading and perceptual motor efficiency program designed to correct reading difficulties; "Teaching Reading in Virginia: Some…

This proceedings includes the following papers: "The 'Thoughtful' Health Practitioner: A Study of a Theoretical Basis for Critical Inquiry Regarding Liberal Arts in Health Professions Curricula" (Mary Jo Belenski); "Secondary School Vocational Program Performance Standards and Measures: Virginia's System of Locally Directed…