A national leader in technical assistance and evaluation, RMC helps educators at all levels—federal, state, district, and school—make thoughtful, evidence-based decisions. Using findings from research, exemplary programs, and effective interventions, we work with educators to improve student achievement, especially in low-performing schools and districts. (See also: Reading & Literacy, Mathematics & Science, Early Childhood, Charter Schools and Alternative Education, Parent Involvement). Recent projects include: Doing What Works
In collaboration with WestEd and AIR, RMC is developing materials for technical assistance providers and education leaders about classroom-, school-, and district-based practices that show promise in improving important student outcomes. Funded by the U.S. Department of Education’s Doing What Works project, RMC and its partners are translating the results of research into web-based products to assist implementation. The initial topics in preparation are teaching reading to K-5 English language learners, early childhood language and literacy, adolescent literacy, and dropout prevention. Materials, including narrated and visual descriptions of the practices, interviews with experts and practitioners, planning tools, and highlights of the practices in action, will be available on a dedicated website. National Comprehensive Center on Instruction
One of five comprehensive content centers funded by the U.S. Department of Education, the Center on Instruction serves the 16 regional comprehensive centers with knowledge and expert technical assistance. As the Center’s leading partner, RMC commissions, publishes, and disseminates research findings and research-based products on literacy, mathematics, science, special education, and education for English language learners.
Visit the Center on Instruction website. New England Comprehensive Center
RMC leads the New England Comprehensive Center, a federally funded regional technical assistance center, in partnership with Education Development Center, Learning Innovations at WestEd, and The Education Alliance at Brown University. The Center works with state education leaders on four regional initiatives—improving adolescent literacy, supporting comprehensive district and school assessment systems, developing statewide systems of support, and engaging institutions of higher education in enhancing teaching quality in the region—as well as responding to specific requests from the six New England states.
Visit the New England Comprehensive Center website. No Child Left Behind-Blue Ribbon Schools Program
RMC manages all activities of the national Blue Ribbon Schools Program, which honors public and private K-12 schools that are academically superior or demonstrate dramatic gains in student achievement. Maintaining a database of all school applications, RMC convenes Blue Ribbon panels, hosts an annual awards ceremony, and reports to the U.S. Department of Education on demographic and test data for dissemination through the Blue Ribbon Schools website. Through school profiles and case studies, RMC also documents strategies and practices that are closing the achievement gap for students.
Read findings from the 2003, 2004, and 2005 site visits. Northeast Regional Educational Laboratory
For ten years RMC was a partner in the Northeast Region and Islands Regional Laboratory (the LAB), created by the U.S. Department of Education to ensure that state, local, and regional educators have access to the best available research and practical knowledge of school improvement. Through extensive data collection, the LAB investigated how education leaders can identify and implement solutions to persistent educational problems. With its partner, the Education Alliance, RMC documented and analyzed emerging state and district responses to No Child Left Behind, specifically those designed to improve low-performing schools.
Read the LAB report on Leadership in Complex Environments. Robin Hood Foundation Library Initiative
With RMC as a critical partner, the Foundation has built 31 new school libraries in New York City since 2002—with 25 more under construction and slated for completion in Fall 2007. RMC helped make the case for the essential role of libraries (and librarians) in whole school reform, literacy programs, and inquiry-based learning and was instrumental in designing procedures to select schools and monitor implementation.
Read about the Robin Hood Foundation Library Initiative.
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