NSF’s Advanced Technological Education (ATE) program focuses on the education of technicians for high-technology fields. The program involves partnerships between academic institutions and industry to promote improvement in the education of science and engineering technicians. With funding through an ATE grant, Yavapai College better aligned their education offerings with industry need and created applied learning experiences for students. Most notably Yavapai College created a braided internship program in which students spend two days working and three days taking related college coursework. Students successfully completing the Continue reading →

This final report from SPR’s evaluation of Yavapai College’s Applied Pre-Engineering Program Expansion describes how the college created a braided internship program (weaving together work experience and a college certificate), new certificate programs, and enhanced student learning with support from a National Science Foundation ATE grant. SPR’s two-year evaluation of the grant activities included a site visit, interviews, focus group, surveys, and an outcome analysis.

The CA Assembly Blue Ribbon Commission (BRC) on Early Childhood Education seeks to improve the child care system by putting system reform ideas into action. As part of this process, the BRC is drafting a report with a set of recommendations to improve the child care system. The BRC believes that parent input is critical for drafting recommendations that are authentic and that will truly make a difference in the lives of California’s parents. Therefore, Parent Voices partnered with Social Policy Research Associates (SPR) to Continue reading →

SPR is proud to share this newly published learning paper on the work of The Colorado Trust’s Health Equity Advocacy grantees, which discusses how the decision to center race in health equity advocacy came about; describes the framework and strategies that the HEA Cohort’s Racial Equity Team used to build racial equity capacity; and presents results on the progress that has been made. It also includes recommendations for others who may be interested in centering race in social change efforts. The HEA Cohort has much Continue reading →

There is a rising tide of interest in modernizing and expanding apprenticeships in California as a strategy to fight income inequality and address a growing jobs-skills mismatch. California’s Governor-Elect Gavin Newsom has set an ambitious goal to increase apprenticeships from 84,000 to 500,000 by 2029, but what will it take to achieve that goal? The Center on the Economics and Management of Education and Training Systems (CEMETS) Reform Lab in Switzerland helps states and countries around the world with challenges like this, drawing on evidence Continue reading →