Information and communication technology demands are increasing across a range of occupations, creating intense global competition for highly-skilled workers. In order to meet the economic needs of the next century, education reform must prioritize student-directed learning that fosters innovation and creativity, enabling the United States to compete internationally in attracting and creating high-quality jobs for its citizens. Our system must strive to create lifelong learners and ensure equity in preparing all students for college- and career-readiness, which increasingly, are considered one in the same. Manor New Technology High School, in Central Texas, has successfully used technology immersion and project-based learning to expand the opportunities for its minority-majority population. Emphasis is placed on teaching students how to learn and in making authentic learning connections with the world through applied, and interdisciplinary coursework. An understanding of how educational technology can be used to create better student outcomes, through investment in teacher peer-to-peer supports to effectively integrate technology into instruction, has led to a sustainable and scalable model of technology immersion at Manor Independent School District. Through its partnerships with local businesses and not-for-profit organizations, Manor New Technology High School is graduating highly skilled and college-bound students, while concurrently promoting sector-based economic development within the high-tech industry. State educational agencies are ill-equipped to meet the challenges of workforce development; therefore, new mechanisms and incentives should be created to encourage and enable school districts to pursue 21st Century competencies (analytic skills, interpersonal skills, ability to execute, information processing, and capacity for change), which are enabled through the “invisible tool” of educational technology in the classroom. / text

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This study examined advanced refundings of Indiana school construction bonds from 1993 to 1996. Purposes were to: (a) add to the professional knowledge base about advanced refundings; (b) evaluate the financial consequences on taxpayers; (c) determine benefits as measured by interest rates, terms, and payment amounts; (d) determine whether selected financial conditions and demographic variables impacted refunding outcomes.The population was all instances of advanced refundings by Indiana public school districts in the period studied. Data were collected from the bond transcripts prepared by legal counsels and placed in tabulation forms developed for the project.Primary findings included:(a) Three quarters of the refunding occurred in the first 10 years of the paymentstream; 27% occurred in the first four years.(b) As the size of the issue increased, the cost (as a percentage of the issue)decreased.(c) Mean decrease in interest rate for the refizndings was .023915 or 239 basis points.(d) Net fiscal impact was generally positive, with a mean savings of $224,218. (e) A negative correlation existed between district wealth and annual paymentamount (i.e., districts with high assessed valuations had smaller changes inannual payments).(f) A positive correlation existed between interest rate change and refunding amount (i.e., large issues were more sensitive to slight changes in interest rates).Selected conclusions included:(a) The benefits of refunding diminished with time (i.e., greatest benefits are likely in the first quarter of the payment stream).(b) Some refundings occurred when the decline in basis points was below a standard level used for municipal bonds; this suggests that school officials may engage in refundings for reasons that extend beyond savings (e.g., political benefits).(c) An economy of scale between refunding size and costs supports existing research.(d) Costs for local school district counsel varied considerably, suggesting that no compensation standard was used.(e) Wealthier districts were less interested in lowering annual payments; their pursuit of refunding may have been motivated by flexibility (i.e., shortening the debt life, accessing fiscal resources).(f) Districts with large bond issues benefited from refunding even when the declines in interest rates were slight.Eight recommendations were formalized. / Department of Educational Leadership

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 1997. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 301-308). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ed. D.)--Teachers College, Columbia University. / Typescript; issued also on microfilm. Sponsor: Frank L. Smith, Jr. Dissertation Committee: William P. Anderson. Bibliography: leaves 74-77.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 1998. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [385]-394).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 1997. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 301-308). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis--University of Florida. / Description based on print version record. Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 133-137).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2004. / Supervisor: Jay D. Scribner. Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Also available from UMI.