Policy: State

This paper examines current trends in the declining employment outcomes among disadvantaged youth, with a particular focus on those "disconnected" from schools and the labor force. The document offers explanations for these trends and analyses of policies designed to improve said outcomes. The supply- and demand-side policies recommended in this piece are ultimately designed to ensure the employability of disadvantaged youth, incentivize labor-force participation, and remove employment barriers faced by offenders and non-custodial parents.

This report provides state education leaders with information on how to align academics and career & technical education (CTE) through implementation of the Common Core State Standards (CCSS). This report describes what states are doing to align CTE and CCSS, highlights strategies, and identifies common challenges and barriers to alignment.

This report examined strategies used in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina to improve student achievement and, ultimately, high school graduation rates to ensure that students are equipped with 21st century skills and knowledge. Information on state-level high school reform initiatives in each state and state profiles were then analyzed to identify themes or “levers for change.” The report provides a detailed description of each lever and aims to give policymakers ideas about approaches to consider.

This primer explores what it means to link data systems from four perspectives: turf, trust, technical issues, and time; provides recommendations for policymakers to ensure data systems meet user needs; and includes snaphots and resources to help states address some of the challenges outlined in the brief. The recommendations include ensuring input from a broad range of stakeholders, defining the questions the system should be designed to answer, establishing governance structures that ensure data-sharing and security, and building capacity for data use among stakeholders.

An update to the 2005 report, An Action Agenda for Improving America's High Schools, this report examines state progress made in improving high schools to prepare students for college and career since 2005. Specifically, this report offers recommendations and best practices to help states restore the value of a high school diploma, redesign high schools to better prepare students for postsecondary success, improve teacher and principal quality, establish high standards and better accountability measures, and improve education governance.

This paper focuses on strategies for creating postsecondary pathways for high school dropouts in order to close the skills gap as well as connect the talents of these youth to postsecondary skills and credentials. The paper argues that in order to improve educational and economical outcomes for high school dropouts, there must be alignment of secondary, postsecondary, workforce, and adult education systems and several actions must be taken.