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High-quality career and technical education (CTE) and work-based learning opportunities can support students along a pathway to credential attainment, employment and upward economic mobility through intentional skill development and experiential learning. CTE concentration in high school can increase graduation rates while helping students build employability skills that can support positive outcomes in the workforce. When CTE concentration is paired with opportunities for postsecondary credit or a quality work-based learning experience, students are more likely to attain postsecondary and workforce credentials, successfully enter the workforce and earn higher wages. The Education Commission of the States staff members interviewed state leaders and policymakers, including state education agency staff, state workforce development agency staff, higher education agency staff and district leaders in Delaware, Iowa, Maryland, North Dakota, South Carolina and Washington to better understand how they align CTE and work-based learning policies and programs with workforce needs. This Policy Brief highlights key findings from the interviews, including insight into obstacles and promising practices in increasing student access, program quality and stakeholder engagement.

Despite a strong track record of success and parent demand, charter school growth has slowed considerably in recent years in Massachusetts and nationwide. In the Commonwealth's large urban school districts--especially Boston--this lack of growth is attributable to charter school caps that prevent the state from authorizing new charter school seats. But some school districts in the Commonwealth have room to grow. They have space available for charter expansion under the state's net school spending (NSS) cap and demand for charter schools in the form of waiting lists. A number of those districts are in Gateway Cities, "midsize urban centers that anchor regional economies around the state." The following paper provides data on the Gateway Cities with room to expand under the NSS cap. It also provides examples of how the politics of charter schooling-- both state and local--have prevented high quality operators from serving students and families who desire a charter school education. Finally, this paper concludes with recommendations to change state charter statute as well as processes and procedures related to charter school authorizing in the Commonwealth. These recommendations would make it more difficult for the state or any locality to deny families the charter school options they desire.

Pennsylvania has "the highest cyber charter school enrollment in the country" with student enrollment soaring in 2020-21 due to concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic. School districts paid over $1 billion in tuition for students enrolled in Pennsylvania's 14 cyber charter schools in 2020-21, a $335 million increase over the prior school year. Districts now cite charter school tuition as their top budget pressure. In a 2017 study, Research for Action found that districts are unable to realize substantial savings when students depart for charter schools, leaving the vast majority of tuition as a "stranded cost" or negative fiscal impact on district finances. Here we apply the findings of that study to estimate the fiscal impact of the expansion of cyber charter schools attributable to the pandemic. We find that year-one stranded costs ranged from $290 to $308 million dollars statewide, highlighting the need for policymakers to address the inefficient spending on cyber charter schools in current law. We also describe the broader context of cyber charter schools in Pennsylvania.

Like Berkeley, the UC system as a whole is quickly running out of space to accommodate the next generation of Californians who will be reaching college age by mid-century. Even with the added capacity at UC Merced, the UC system will run out of space on existing campuses in the next decade. In the normal course of events, this would trigger planning for another new general campus. Yet at a time when the university is still reeling from the effects of the Great Recession, the wisdom of an expensive new general campus is questionable. The need now is to rebuild and reinvest in existing campuses, not build a new one. These considerations suggest a different strategy for long-term enrollment growth than the UC system has followed in the past: Growing off-campus capacity at mature campuses. This paper describes a range of potential options for off-campus expansion, such as a branch campus at Berkeley. Such a strategy could accommodate the moderate level of enrollment growth projected for UC between now and mid-century and would be far less expensive than a new general campus. Expanding off-campus capacity at mature campuses like Berkeley could also channel new resources where the financial damage to academic programs and infrastructure has been greatest.

In fall 2017, Propel Schools initiated the expansion of one of its schools, Propel Montour. Originally a single K-8 school with two classrooms per grade, Montour added a new high school and expanded into separate elementary and middle schools over four years, adding a classroom to each grade. In this report, the authors used difference-in-difference and doubly robust regression models to examine the academic and behavioral experiences of both continuing and expansion Montour students from fall 2017 through the onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in spring 2020. The analyses did not find evidence that the academic and behavioral experiences of either the continuing or expansion students fell below what would have been expected absent expansion. Although the expansion experiences of a single charter management organization (CMO) network might be idiosyncratic to that entity and the locale and population it serves, this report should be of interest to similarly structured CMOs, the organizations from which they might seek expansion funding, those involved in school choice policy, and state and local education leaders and policymakers. [This report was supported through a subcontract with Propel Schools Foundation.]

As explored in the first report in this series, the past decade has been a period of tremendous growth for UMass. This growth has taken many forms, including expansion of the school's capital facilities, increased student enrollment, and a growing national profile and public mission. These developments have resulted in innumerable successes for the university, including impressive leaps in national rankings. As the first report discussed, from 2005 to 2014, UMass increased total enrollment by 27.3 percent, far outpacing the average of other New England state universities (1.7 percent), MA private four-year universities (11.8 percent), U.S. public universities (14.4 percent), and U.S. private universities (16.4 percent). UMass' expanding programs have resulted in significant increases in operating expenses over this period, as this report will explore in greater depth. UMass capital expansion and enrollment growth are closely linked. To attract and accommodate more students, UMass undertook a building boom on its campuses between FY2005 and FY2015 with a price tag of $3.81 billion, only $1.38 billion of which was funded by the state. The university funded the balance by itself through increased institutional borrowing, more revenue from tuition and fees, and admitting increasingly higher volumes of out-of-state students who pay more to attend. The institution recently adopted an ambitious $6.98 billion FY2015-2019 Capital Plan that outlines significant additional expansion of the university's five campuses. This report considers the implications of the capital plan on future university and state finances. Findings suggest that UMass' capital plan as currently proposed threatens to exacerbate the budget gap that has been created by capital and enrollment expansion and increase the university's dependence on future state capital and operating funding, tuition and fee revenue increases, along with expanded enrollment of out-of-state students to support the university's growing costs. [For "UMass at a Crossroads Part 1: Is the UMass Enrollment Expansion Plan Sustainable? White Paper No. 145," see ED598651. For "UMass at a Crossroads Part 3: UMass' Growing Dependency on Tuition and Fees and Strategic Recruitment of Out-Of-State Students. White Paper No. 147," see ED598661.]

Enrollment in charter public schools has grown by 250,000 students in the 2015-16 school year, and more than 400 new charter public schools have opened their doors, according to, "A Closer Look at the Charter School Movement: Schools, Students, and Management Organizations, 2015-16." The report also estimates that the total number of students currently attending charter public schools is nearly 3 million, representing a sixfold increase in charter school enrollment over the past 15 years. While more than 400 new charter schools opened this school year, the report finds that about 270 schools ceased operations. These schools closed for a variety of reasons, including low enrollment, inadequate financial resources and low academic performance. More than 6,800 charter public schools are now open across 42 states and the District of Columbia.

Rural students comprise a vital segment of the American public education system. Presently, one in four public school enrollees--over 11 million children--attend rural schools in the U.S. Rural enrollment is trending upward at a faster rate than other locales. From 2006 to 2009, enrollment in rural public schools increased by almost one million students, marking an 8 percent rise, while enrollment trends in urban and suburban schools were flat. This issue brief explores how public charter schools can meet the educational needs of rural communities. In the following sections the authors describe the common challenges faced in rural public education, depict the current landscape of rural charter schools, and discuss some key hurdles that must be overcome in order to launch a successful rural charter school. Additionally, they highlight some innovative approaches that charter schools have used to achieve success in rural communities and offer policy recommendations for achieving charter school quality and scale in rural communities. (Contains 2 tables, 1 figure and 50 sources.)

This report contains a summary of the findings from the various topical reports that comprise the author's comprehensive longitudinal study. As a summary, it does not include extensive details regarding the study samples and scientific methodologies employed in those topical studies. The research revealed a pattern of school choice results that range from neutral (no significant differences between Choice and Milwaukee Public Schools) to positive (clear benefit to Choice). The major findings from this last set of seven topical reports are that: (1) Participation in MPCP continues to grow even as both MPCP and MPS have succeeded in closing or at least denying public funds to a substantial number of low-performing schools over the past five years (Report #33); (2) Enrolling in a private high school through MPCP increases the likelihood of a student graduating from high school, enrolling in a four-year college, and persisting in college by 4-7 percentage points (Report #30); (3) When similar MPCP and MPS students are matched and tracked over four years, the achievement growth of MPCP students compared to MPS students is higher in reading but similar in math. The MPCP achievement advantage in reading is only conclusive in 2010-11, the year a high-stakes testing policy was added to the MPCP (Report #29); (4) When a snapshot of all MPCP students who took the state accountability test is compared to a snapshot of the performance of MPS students with similar income disadvantages, the MPCP students are performing at higher levels in the upper grades in reading and science but at lower levels in math at all grade levels examined and in reading and science in 4th grade (Report #32); (5) Based on MPCP and MPS administrative data on MPCP students as well as parent surveys, between 7.5 and 14.6 percent of MPCP students have a disability, a rate at least four times higher than previously reported by DPI (Report #35); (6) Visits to 13 MPCP schools revealed that many Choice students come to the schools behind by 1-2 years academically; the MPCP schools use various strategies to try to "catch them up" and prepare them for college and succeed with some but not all of them (Report #34); and (7) When similar independent public charter and MPS students are matched and tracked over four years, the achievement growth of the charter students compared to MPS students is similar in both reading and math, though conversion charters, which used to be private schools, clearly deliver higher achievement growth than MPS (Report #31). (Contains 1 table, 7 figures and 2 footnotes.)

Public education is one of the central tasks of a democratic society, and the buildings that house this important task not only shape the way one teaches, but provide icons and symbols for the values people hold common as a society. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this context has placed school buildings squarely in a position of debate and innovation since the nation began, and school buildings continue to be the subject of careful study and debate today. Schools are influenced by political and social movements, new technologies and trends, the growing awareness of what makes one learn better and thus the notions of what makes a great school are constantly shifting and adapting to new ideas. This paper provides a brief history of the past century and a half of school design, focusing particularly on the systems that made schools livable and conducive to learning: lighting, heating, cooling, ventilation, and acoustics. (Contains 14 figures.)

The Administration's "Blueprint For Reform," and FY 2011 budget proposal set forth an education agenda that would make the expansion of charter schools a cornerstone of the reauthorized Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). Likewise, HR 4330 would promote charter schools as a central catalyst for education reform. Without clearer guidelines, charter school expansion could exacerbate racial and socio-economic isolation, and would also miss an opportunity to promote diversity. The recommendations presented in this paper urge Congress to pair federal support for charter school expansion with incentives that would create and sustain racially, economically and linguistically diverse charter schools; safeguards to ensure that the civil rights of all children are protected; and funding increases that would provide for the expansion or replication of effective, diverse magnet school models. (Contains 25 endnotes.)

The public debate about the success and expansion of charter schools often seems to gravitate toward a tiny handful of empirical studies, when there is, in fact, a relatively well-developed literature focused on whether these schools generate larger testing gains among their students relative to their counterparts in comparable regular public schools. This brief reviews this body of evidence, with a focus on high-quality state- and district-level analyses that address, directly or indirectly, three questions: (1) Do charter schools produce larger testing gains overall?; (2) What policies and practices seem to be associated with better performance? and (3) Can charter schools expand successfully within the same location? (Contains 8 footnotes and 3 notes.)

In communities nationwide, public charter schools are meeting the growing demand for high-quality education opportunities. This is especially true in communities with underperforming public district schools that are not meeting the academic needs of students, including poor and minority students. Forty states and the District of Columbia have laws allowing for fiscally independent, tuition-free charter schools that operate under a performance contract. Today more than 1.2 million students attend the more than 4,300 charter schools established since the first state charter law was enacted in 1991. Yet many students and their families are denied access to quality charter school options because of limits placed on the development of new charter schools or expansion of existing high-performing charter schools. While not every charter school is successful, the charter movement has produced several outstanding schools that consistently demonstrate high levels of academic growth and success for all their students, regardless of race or family income. Given these exemplary models and the increased demand for high-performing charter schools, many state policymakers want to accelerate the replication of such schools. Achieving excellence at scale requires states to pursue strategies that promote growth (i.e., expansion or replication) among charters with a track record of success. Governors and policymakers seeking to increase the number of high-performing charter schools can: (1) Define charter school quality to guide charter school expansion; (2) Streamline reporting, renewal, and governance requirements for high-performing charter schools; (3) Create at least one statewide authorizing body to facilitate outstanding charter school expansion; (4) Ensure greater parity of funding between charter schools and district public schools; and (5) Support charter schools' access to adequate facilities. A section titled Charter School Expansion Basics is appended. (Contains 41 endnotes.)

North Carolina's preschool program has solid evidence that it produces long-term benefits, but most children eligible for NC Pre-K are unable to enroll due to inadequate state funding, according to an analysis by the National Institute for Early Education Research. "Barriers to Expansion of NC Pre-K: Problems and Potential Solutions" highlights three interrelated issues critical to expanding the NC Pre-K program: accurately determining how many children are eligible for NC Pre-K but lack access; analyzing whether county "waiting lists" reflect the need for NC Pre-K, and barriers to expanding NC Pre-K to fully meet the actual need. The NC Pre-K program was launched in 2001 to provide to high-quality early learning opportunities to at-risk children. Research by Duke University has found NC Pre-K boosted math and reading test scores and reduced special education placements and grade repetition through the end of primary school. However, NC Pre-K now reaches less than half (47 percent) the children it was designed to serve. Significant numbers of young children--almost 33,000--across all races and ethnicities, in both rural and urban areas, are losing the opportunity to develop foundational skills needed to succeed in school and beyond. In fact, 40 counties are serving less than half of eligible children. While children may be attending other early education programs, those programs do not provide all the quality components of NC Pre-K--so those vulnerable children are less likely to gain the lasting benefits provided by NC Pre-K. The new NIEER report identifies financial barriers undermining the promise of NC Pre-K, and recommends policy changes to overcome them. [This report was written with assistance from Richard Kasmin.]

In 2007, the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges amended its Title 5 Regulations to grant conditional approval to proposals for educational centers if certain criteria were met at the time of submission. Among other requirements, a district would need to demonstrate that a proposed center would serve at least 500 full-time equivalent students annually by the third year of operation. In this report, staff considered a proposal by the Los Rios Community College District for conditional approval for an educational center that will be located in the City of Elk Grove. This report is submitted as an information item because the Commission has not yet adopted criteria and guidelines for conditional approval of community college educational centers. After such criteria are adopted, staff will submit an updated analysis of the Los Rios proposal that will contain a staff recommendation. It is anticipated that staff will develop a set of guidelines for consideration by the Commission at its March 2009 meeting.

Pursuant to Education Code 66903, the California Postsecondary Education Commission is charged with reviewing and commenting on the need for new academic programs at California's public colleges and universities and with making recommendations to the Legislature and the Governor. In September 2006, the Commission considered a proposal to establish a School of Law at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). Following a preliminary finding of non-concurrence, UC Irvine and the UC Office of the President submitted supplemental information in response to concerns raised by staff. This report contains a final analysis of all proposal information and supporting documents.

In May 2001, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell announced the establishment of the Global Development Alliance (GDA) as a key part of a new business model for the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The GDA initiative aims to launch best practices in public-private partnerships around the world. The model is designed to encourage economic growth, develop businesses and workforces, address health and environmental problems, and expand access to education and technology. In response to the dire need to support education in Nicaragua, the Global Development Alliance/Public Private Alliances in Education Program was launched in October 2002 through a cooperative agreement with the Academy for Educational Development (AED). The primary objective of GDA Nicaragua was to extend the educational reforms of the USAID-funded Basic Education Project in Nicaragua (BASE) in partnership with the private sector through the Model School Expansion project (GDA/MSE). AED also strove to integrate the donations and contributions of the private sector into the Model School reform to enhance the overall impact of partner activities. In designing GDA/MSE, AED decided to link its educational goals with those of AMCHAM and ANF, two local organizations with education projects already in place. Throughout the project, various actors took on new and exciting roles, helping the project expand and reach an unprecedented number of school communities outside the initial Model School network. In fact, the GDA project went beyond its initial goal of supporting 130 schools and grew to 171 schools. The schools demonstrated improvement in a short time with an overall 3% increase in student retention and an average 4.25% increase in test scores. With the backbone of USAID support, many private-sector companies expanded their support, newly confident that their donations would positively impact education. As a result, GDA successfully harnessed the participation of more than 50 private-sector sponsors who supported the project goals in diverse ways. The synergy enabled by this alliance propelled the education initiatives to new and exciting heights in Nicaragua. The GDA/MSE project has distinguished itself as a true success story for public-private partnerships in education. This publication outlines the primary ingredients for creating this successful public-private partnership in education and provides a snapshot of how the program affected participating school communities and sponsors.

Providing education for young children is an investment in their future. It can also benefit all members of society, because of the spill-over effects from having a better educated population. The critical question is: How much should a society invest in pre-schooling? The focus of this research is on only one of the benefits of pre-school: the cost-savings that arise from reduced placement in special education. Studies have found that pre-schooling programs significantly reduce the rate of special education placement. Across the US, over $80 billion is spent annually on special education (approximately one-fifth of all public spending on education). Given this substantial commitment, it is imperative to invest wisely and efficiently; even very minor improvements in how resources are allocated could free up millions of dollars. This report calculates the likely savings in special education budgets from expanding pre-schooling for Pennsylvania. The report is structured as follows. In Section 2, pre-schooling provision in Pennsylvania is described; two policy scenarios are set out to expand provision--making pre-school available either to all children or to a target group which might benefit the most. For each policy, the impact on pre-school is described, and the total cost of such a policy is estimated. Current provision and funding of special education across the state is also described. Section 3 reviews the evidence on the extent to which pre-schooling programs reduce special education. This evidence is then used to model the reduction in special education requirements for Pennsylvania. In Section 4, the expected cost-savings are set against initial investment costs and against the total expenditures on special education. This allows for adjudication as to whether expanding pre-schooling would yield economic benefits to the state. Sensitivity analysis is also performed to see how the amounts of cost-savings might vary. Finally, Section 5 gives a concluding summary. (Contains 10 tables, 1 figure and 16 endnotes.)

This report to the California Governor and legislature reviews the proposal submitted by the Southwestern Community College District (SCCD) (California) to establish a state-approved educational center in Otay Mesa, to be known as the Southwestern Community College's Higher Education Center at Otay Mesa. The proposed state-supported center allows the district to effectively serve, by 2015, approximately 2,740 full-time equivalent students (FTES) in the ethnically diverse and growing communities of southern San Diego County. SCCD serves the southern part of the San Diego urban area. The proposed center will serve students from San Diego's south bay area, where the median income is $36,500, compared with $46,500 for the county as a whole. The majority of jobs in the area are in the services and trade, with relatively few jobs in technology industries. The area population is 56% Latino, with 16% of the population aged 20-29. Headcount enrollment reached 17,800 in 2000, up nearly 6% from 1998. Enrollment is expected to reach 23,000 by 2010. The district's existing sites are either at capacity or are inconveniently located. The California Postsecondary Education Commission, which provides independent analysis of the costs and benefits of proposed projects, accepted the center proposal and recommended its authorization by the state. Review guidelines and research data appended. (NB)

This report, responding to a Florida legislative request, examines the Palm Beach County School Board's planned purchase of concrete relocatable classrooms. The report presents a number of findings and recommendations. Concrete units are more expensive than models with metal stud walls; both types meet state building code standards. The district plans to spend $35 million over 5 years to purchase 500 concrete relocatables. The district's purchase price for concrete relocatables is higher than prices for similar units in other districts. Concrete relocatables are more expensive to purchase and move than alternative types of relocatables, but have the appearance of permanent construction and may have a longer life. If the district purchases 500 concrete units as planned, it will spend approximately $12.7 million more for these units over the 5-year period than if it had bought metal stud wall units. In addition, it costs $1,150 more to move a concrete unit to another location than a metal stud unit. The district reasoned that concrete units were more durable and safer. However, the district did not conduct a life-cycle cost analysis prior to its decision. To better justify future relocatable expenditures, the report recommends that the board conduct life cycle cost analyses to compare available relocatables. (EV)

This report reviews the proposal by the West Hills Community College District (WHCCD) (California) to transition its off-campus center to full college status. The proposal's objectives include: (1) establishing a new comprehensive college that will serve approximately 1,700 full-time-equivalent students by 2015; and (2) providing greater access to higher educational opportunities for the under-served population of the district and improve community college attendance rates in the region. According to the proposal, given the expansive territory the district covers, enrollments at other district facilities will not be adversely impacted by the new campus. The report presents a summary of the California Postsecondary Education Commission's (CPEC) conclusions regarding the advisability of the proposal with respect to four CPEC criteria for the establishment of new postsecondary institutions: (1) enrollment projections; (2) programmatic alternatives; (3) serving the disadvantaged; and (4) academic planning and program justification. The report concludes with the Commission's recommendation to approve the proposal. Appended are letters in support of the proposal; the Commission's Guidelines for Review of Proposed University Campuses, Community Colleges, and Educational Centers; and a copy of the Commission's conclusions concerning Kings County Center. (RC)