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Founded in 1948, the Southern Regional Education Board is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works with leaders and
policy-makers in 16 member states to improve pre-K through postsecondary education. Through many nationally recognized programs
and services, SREB’s mission is helping states achieve the
12 Challenge to Lead Goals for Education.
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SREB States Are National Leaders in Education Technology
Most Southern Regional Education Board states rate among the nation’s leaders in K-12 education technology — providing many
of the region’s students with the greatest access to technology and online courses.
The results come from the Technology Counts 2008 special report by
Education Week, the leading national publication covering
K-12 education. Released this week, the report issued letter grades to states based on 14 indicators in three major areas of
technology policy and practice: access, use and capacity.
West Virginia — one of the 16 SREB states — rated No. 1 in the nation overall for education technology in the report.
Seven of the top 10 highest-rated states are SREB states.
Thanks in part to the
SREB Educational Technology Cooperative, which brings together education technology leaders from the
16 SREB states regularly for training and collaboration, nearly all SREB states have state virtual schools that provide
online courses to middle grades and high school students. See this
press release or visit
www.edweek.org.
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1. West Virginia |
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2. South Dakota |
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3. Georgia |
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4. Virginia |
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5. Kentucky |
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6. North Dakota |
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7. Florida |
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8. Louisiana |
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9. Pennsylvania |
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10. North Carolina |
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Report: Major Demographic Shifts to Impact K-12 and Higher Education
The number of Hispanic public high school graduates in 2008 in SREB states is projected to more than double by 2022,
a higher rate of increase than in the nation, according to a report from the Denver-based Western Interstate Commission
for Higher Education, SREB’s counterpart for higher education in the West.
Knocking at the College Door: Projections of High School Graduates by State and Race/Ethnicity 1992-2022,
shows that many SREB states will see far greater proportions of Hispanic high
school graduates and prospective students in colleges and career preparation in
the coming years. For more details, see this press release. Or see the
SREB Fact Book on Higher Education and
state-by-state reports on higher education data trends.
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SREB States Lead the Nation in Quality of Pre-K Programs
SREB states continue to lead the nation in the overall quality of publicly funded prekindergarten programs for 4-year-olds,
a national report shows. The National Institute for Early Education Research’s
State of Preschool 2007 shows that most of the
nation’s 4-year-olds still do not have access to state-funded prekindergarten.
The report ranks all 50 states on the percentage of children served and spending per child. It also compares
the number of quality standards each state meets. Oklahoma is No. 1 in the nation in providing access to state-funded
prekindergarten classes, serving 68 percent of the state’s 4-year-olds. Seven of the top 10 states in this category are
SREB states: Florida was second, Georgia third, West Virginia fourth, Texas fifth, South Carolina seventh and Maryland 10th.
For more details, see this
press release. Or visit
www.nieer.org.
Also, see more information on
pre-K programs in SREB states.
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SREB States’ Growth Will Create Educational Challenges
More than half of the nation’s population growth over the next 20 years will be in SREB states, according
to
Fact Book Bulletin: SREB
States Lead Growth As U.S. Population Tops 300 Million. Dramatic increases in the Hispanic population and in
older adults are expected, along with a decline in working-age adults — which could lead to ongoing educational challenges
for the South. For details, see the report and the
press release.
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States Need to Take Action and Smooth Transition from High School to College and Careers
The nation’s work force will be in jeopardy unless all high school students are better prepared for college study and today’s
highly skilled workplace, a new SREB report says. Many high schools in SREB states focus primarily on students who plan to enroll
in four-year colleges, overlooking the students who will enter community colleges, technical schools or the
job market. As a
result, many students are dropping out of high school and are on a lifetime path to low-wage jobs or unemployment, notes
Lost
in Transition: Building a Better Path from School to College and Careers.
The report recommends actions SREB states can take to encourage all students to prepare for the challenges ahead. It is based
on discussions by nearly 500 state leaders at forums sponsored by SREB and the League for Innovation in the Community College.
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SREB States Need to Raise Quality of School Leadership Systems
SREB states are making progress in developing school leadership systems to ensure that every public school has a
principal who can improve student performance — but states need to accelerate their efforts in order to meet their own
achievement goals, a new SREB report shows.
Schools Need Good Leaders Now: State Progress in Creating a Learning-Centered School Leadership System calls
for a new generation of school leaders who look beyond administrative tasks and put curriculum and learning first. Individual
states’ rates of improvement in school leadership systems and practices vary greatly. For state-by-state information, click
on the link to the report above. For general information, see the
press release.
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SREB Region Leads Nation in State-Funded Prekindergarten, But
Still Needs to Improve
SREB states are national leaders in providing state-funded prekindergarten
for 4-year-olds, but states need to take further action to ensure that all
children are ready for school, a new SREB report shows.
Ready to Start: Ensuring High-Quality Prekindergarten in SREB States
reviews states' progress in improving prekindergarten access. The majority of
America's 4-year-olds attending prekindergarten last year were enrolled in SREB
states, the report shows. It calls for a greater focus on quality, sustainable
funding, teacher training and other actions to help more children prepare for
school
— especially those from impoverished and English-as-a-second-language
families. Click on the link above to read the report, or read this
press release.
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2007 SREB Fact Book on Higher Education and 16 State-Specific Featured Facts Reports Now Available
The
SREB Fact Book on Higher Education is one of the
nation's most comprehensive collections of data on higher education. The
50th anniversary edition continues a SREB tradition dating back to 1956
of providing comparative national, regional and state-specific data
highlighting trends that affect colleges and universities. This year's
highlights include historic increases in college enrollment, details on
population changes that could challenge SREB states' continued education
progress, and the growing college affordability gap for lower- and
middle-income students. Also, updates on higher education-related data
for each of the 16 SREB states are available in
individual states' Featured Facts reports. For decades, state
leaders, policy-makers, researchers and journalists have used the
Fact Book to find useful data quickly
— and to learn more about
long-term trends and developments in SREB states and across the nation.
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SREB States Take Action on Teacher Pay
Teacher pay continues to be a hot issue for states, particularly since it is likely the largest
expenditure in education budgets. SREB states continue to focus on ways to use salary funds to address
priorities such as attracting and retaining teachers, raising student achievement and closing achievement
gaps. For the latest on average salaries, including an update on recent incentive pay programs, pilot projects
and other legislative actions that affect teacher compensation, click on
Focus on Teacher Pay and Incentives:
Recent Legislative Actions and Update on Salary Averages. |
Southern Regional Education Board
592 10th St. N.W.
Atlanta, GA 30318-5776
(404) 875-9211
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