The purpose of this study was to report the status of alternative teacher certification in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia and to provide a descriptive analysis of alternative certification programs and participants. Descriptive survey research was used in this study. state Offices of Teacher Education and Certification in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia were contacted and surveyed to obtain the data. It was determined that 30 states had enacted alternative certification provisions and were implementing alternative certification programs. Eleven additional states and the District of Columbia were found to be considering or having proposed provisions for alternative certification. The majority of alternative certification programs in operation were established during the 1980s, and over 50% of the states implementing alternative certification programs cited a shortage of teachers as a rationale for the programs' establishment. An analysis of the characteristics of alternative certification programs revealed that all programs required a bachelor's degree for admission into the program. Formal instruction often required some type of prescribed coursework, and field experience in the majority of programs allowed participants to assume full time teaching responsibilities prior to completing the program. The length of alternative certification programs ranged from 1 to 5 years. Data on alternative certification program participants were limited. From the demographic data obtained, it was determined that most participants were Caucasian and were female. Based upon data received from ten states, it was further determined that 3,249 participants had achieved regular certification after completing an alternative certification program. The provider of an alternative certification program was identified as either a local school district, an institution of higher education, a state education agency, or a collaboration of these entities. No differences were found in the programs' characteristics or the gender and the ethnicity of the participants, based on the provider. / Ed. D.

Policy case studies are presented on two congressional proposals that, if implemented, may result in implicit or explicit federal government endorsement of particular standards for the licensure or certification of teachers. They are, (a) authorization for the United States Department of Education to award design and implementation grants for programs of alternative teacher credentialing, and (b) appropriation of federal funds to support the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. A discussion of the genesis of each proposal, a review of the legislative history of these two measures, and analysis of supporting rationale for each is included. Using an analytic framework based on the works of Deborah Stone and Thomas Green, it was determined that unresolved policy conflicts over teacher education governance and content led to federal attention to matters of teacher certification and licensure. / Ph. D.

The purpose of this study was to determine the extent to which scores on the Certified Professional Secretaries® Examination could be predicted by selected education, work experience, test preparation, and demographic variables. A secondary purpose was to develop descriptive profiles of candidates who passed and who failed to pass on their first attempt on the new three-part CPS® Examination. The independent variable categories were education, work experience, test preparation, and demographics of professional associations, work status, and salary. The dependent variables were the scores on the three parts of the May 1995 CPS® Examination. The sample in the study consisted of 300 randomly selected examination candidates, 150 from the pass group and 150 from the fail group, of the May 1995 CPS® Examination. Data were collected by having Professional Secretaries International® mail a questionnaire to the candidates to ensure anonymity. After three questionnaire mailings and a postcard follow up, seventy-nine percent (79%) of the questionnaires were returned. Data analyses were completed by using both descriptive and regression statistics. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the sample and revealed some striking similarities between the pass and fail groups. Regression analyses were used to examine ability of the variables selected for inclusion in this study to predicting performance on the Certified Professional Secretaries® (CPS®) Examination. The extensive regression analyses on the nationally representative sample of candidates included in the present study, however, revealed only limited statistical significance in the final equations. It was therefore concluded that based on these findings, the selected variables do not have practical utility for predicting future performance on the CPS® Examination. / Ed. D.

This thesis consists of two research papers, each of which studies the benefits from a different College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) program. These analyses provide necessary information to allocate resources efficiently among programs. The first paper studies the Virginia Quality Assured feeder cattle certification program and its effects on feeder cattle prices and profitability. No significant effect on price from VQA certification is found. However, enterprise budgets indicate that VQA cattle allow higher farm profits due to their lower sale weight, which allows for faster turnover and lower prices. The second paper studies the benefits to producers from wheat and barley breeding conducted by Virginia Tech researchers. Variety trial data are combined with acreage estimates constructed from royalty data to estimate gains from replacement of old varieties with new ones. The study finds that the program generated benefits to producers of over $119 million between 2000 and 2018. / Master of Science / This thesis contains two papers that assessed the benefits of two agricultural research and extension programs at Virginia Tech. The first paper studies the Virginia Quality Assured certification program. This program certifies cattle that have been raised following practices that are designed to result in cattle that will grow faster and stay healthier in a feedlot. Statistical analysis of cattle sold through a Virginia telephone auction show that VQA certified cattle do not receive higher prices than uncertified cattle, but the analysis also finds that certified and uncertified cattle have important physical differences, including lighter weights for certified cattle. These lighter weights make it possible for farmers to sell more VQA cattle in a year because they spend less time gaining weight before being sold, giving producers of VQA cattle the opportunity for higher profits per year. The second paper studies the benefits to farmers from wheat and barley breeding by Virginia Tech researchers. Field trials are used to compare the yields of old and new varieties, and acreage estimates are used to show how newer varieties replace older ones in farmers' fields. The study finds that economic benefits to farmers from new varieties released by the program total $119 million from 2000 to 2018.

Virginia Tech researchers conducted a study to assist the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) in determining the policies and procedures necessary for the implementation of the United States Environmental Protection Agency final guidelines for the certification and recertification of small water system operators of community (CWS) and nontransient noncommunity public (NTNC) water systems serving under 3,300 people. A 42-question survey was developed and mailed to 2011 public water systems that serve 3,300 people or less. Survey results revealed that small systems in Virginia encompassed a diverse group of waterworks and owners/operators. Significant differences were found when survey results were analyzed by the number of people served and system category. Systems serving less than 100 people tended to not have a licensed operator, not have a full time employee, not meter their customers, and not have an operations and maintenance budget. As the system size increased, the likelihood of each increased. This research was supported by a grant from the Virginia Department of Health. / Master of Science

The development of the certification of public school principals in the Commonwealth of Virginia was investigated. Historical, legal, social, and political issues were considered. A model of the development of certification was proposed as a result of the pattern of changes, revisions, recommendations, and projections. The model identifies Stage I as the development from 1927 to 1987, the Transition to Stage II as the influence of reform reports from 1983 to 1987, and 1988 as the beginning of Stage II. A complete chronology of the development is included. / Ed. D.

The purpose of this dissertation was twofold. First, the study sought to determine if the Texas Academic Skills Program (TASP) Reading score predicts success on the Examination for the Certification of Educators in Texas (ExCET). Second, the study addressed the effect on individuals of color of raising the minimum TASP Reading score entrance requirement for admission to teacher preparation programs. Data were collected from the ExCET Office of a Carnegie I metropolitan university. The defined sample consisted of 961 participants who had a TASP Reading score and had taken an Elementary Comprehensive ExCET, an Elementary Professional Development ExCET or a Secondary Professional ExCET between September 1999 and January 2001. Linear Regression, Box Test, Predictive Discriminate Analysis, and frequency distribution tables were used for analyses. This investigation examined the effects of the independent variable of TASP Reading score on the performance of participants on the dependent variable, the ExCET. Four null hypotheses were tested at the .05 level of significance. The TASP Reading score was a statistically significant predictor for success on the Elementary Comprehensive ExCET, Elementary Professional Development ExCET, and the Secondary Professional Development ExCET. However, the Predictive Discriminate Analysis indicated that a TASP Reading score of 220 predicted that no candidates would fail the Elementary Comprehensive ExCET, 6 participants would fail the Elementary Professional Development ExCET and 19 participants would fail the Secondary Professional Development ExCET. Five hypotheses addressed the effect of raising the TASP Reading score to 250. Findings of four hypotheses showed that raising this admission standard would impact the number of individuals of color granted admission to the teacher preparation program. These results call for the recommendation that governing agencies address the impact of state teacher education program accreditation that often results in the policy of relying on the TASP Reading score as one of the primary admission standards for teacher education programs. The unintended outcome of raising the reading admission standard in the anticipation of continued state accreditation is a noticeable loss of candidates of colors, especially African American candidates.

Au cours de la seconde moitié du XXe siècle se structure une politique publique des conditions d’accès à l’encadrement sportif professionnel dans le secteur privé. Progressivement, l’Etat instaure un monopole sur celles-ci. Ce travail vise à saisir cette dynamique et à analyser le passage d’une politique publique à une action publique au tournant des années 2000, dans un processus de libéralisation. En effet, des changements législatifs remettent en cause cette exclusivité étatique et engendrent une démultiplication des certifications et des certificateurs permettant d’encadrer professionnellement une discipline sportive. Dans cette nouvelle gouvernance figurent plusieurs institutions (le Ministère en charge des Sports, la filière universitaire STAPS ou encore la récente branche professionnelle sport) et plusieurs dispositifs(les « certifications professionnelles » déclinées dorénavant en trois registres) potentiellement concurrentiels. Dans cette architecture, des expertises et des instruments d’action publique sont éprouvés pour tenter d’apporter davantage de complémentarité et de lisibilité. Ces reconfigurations politiques et ces rénovations des certifications sont à envisager dans un processusd’européanisation de la relation emploi-formation-certification et du dialogue social. Ces velléitésdoivent faire face à l’éclatement du secteur sportif au sein de l’Union Européenne mais aussi à la réticence de certains acteurs face à la mobilité des encadrants sportifs dans l’espace communautaire.Ces trois processus (structuration, libéralisation et européanisation) mettent au jour des thématiques sous-jacentes telles que la professionnalisation de l’encadrement sportif, l’entrée dans l’ère de la certification professionnelle ou encore la recherche de transparence européenne. / During the second half of the 20th century, a public policy takes shape around theconditions of access to professional sports training in the private sector gradually monopolized bythe State. This study aims at comprehending this dynamics and at analyzing the move from apublic policy to a public action at the turn of the 2000s as part of a liberalizing process. Indeed,legislative changes question this state exclusivity and bring about a multiplication of thecertifications and certifiers that make it possible to professionally train, supervise and manage asport. In this new governance, several institutions are represented (the Ministry in charge ofSports, the STAPS university sector, along with the recent professional sports sector) and severalpotentially competitive devices (the "professional certifications" now adapted to three differentregisters). In this architecture, expertises and public action instruments are tested to try and bringmore complementarity and legibility. These political reconfigurations and these certificationrenovations are to be considered in the context of a process aimed at Europeanizing therelationship between employment, training and certification and at opening a social dialog. Thesemovements have to face the explosion of the sports sector within the European Union, but also thereluctance of some actors faced with the mobility of sports trainers in the community space.These three processes (structuring, liberalizing and Europeanizing) bring to light underlyingthemes such as the professionalization of sports training, the entry into the era of professionalcertification and the search for European transparency.

Face aux effets néfastes de la croissance économique mondiale, la société civile réclame un autre développement, qui a été dénommé "développement durable" et défini dans le rapport Brundtland de 1987. Engagée dans l'Agenda 21, la France s'efforce d'adopter des textes législatifs et réglementaires pour promouvoir le développement durable. La charte de l'environnement de 2004 a été intégrée dans le préambule de la Constitution de 1958, conférant au développement durable un statut d'objectif à valeur constitutionnelle. Par l'article 60 de la loi du 2 août 2005, le commerce équitable s'inscrit dans la stratégie nationale de développement durable. Mais, aucune définition du commerce équitable ne figure dans cet article. Actuellement, les acteurs économiques pratiquent leur propre équité pour mettre en œuvre les conditions du commerce équitable. Celles-ci sont notamment le commerce avec les petits producteurs des pays du Sud, une production respectant l'environnement, le paiement d'un juste prix, ainsi que l'attribution de bénéfices sociaux aux producteurs et à leur famille. Les acteurs économiques établissent des attestations de qualité pour garantir aux consommateurs le respect de ces principes. D'un point de vue juridique, des questions se posent du fait que ces attestations ne sont ni initiées ni validées par les pouvoirs publics en France ou à l'étranger. La fiabilité de ces pratiques menace l'ordre juridique lorsque leur véracité ne peut pas être vérifiée. L'intervention de l'État est indispensable pour légiférer sur l'équité en question. Néanmoins, un État ne représente que l'intérêt de son peuple sans pouvoir faire d'ingérence dans les affaires d'un autre État souverain, alors que la législation du commerce équitable implique une gouvernance des relations commerciales entre les acteurs économiques des pays du Nord avec les petits producteurs des pays du Sud. En conséquence, il va falloir trouver un nouveau mode de gouvernance pour réguler le commerce équitable. M. Pascal LAMY appelle cette nouvelle gouvernance "gouvernance alternationale". Pour la réaliser, la participation de la société civile à côté de celle des pouvoirs publics est nécessaire. / Social society claims for the sustainable development against the nefas effect of the world economic growth. In 1987, the sustainable development is, officially, announced in the Brundtland report. Engaged by the Agenda 21, France gets to promote the sustainable development by creating laws and government acts. Indeed, the environmental Charter year 2004 is integrated into the preamble of the French Constitution year 1958. The sustainable development is considered as a goal within constitutional value. With article 60 of the law released on 2nd of august 2005, fair trade is registered as the national strategy for the sustainable development. Without any legal definition on fair trade, the economic actors introduce their own equity to run the fair trade conditions. They are for example practice of fair trade with the disadvantage farmers or producers in South, payment of fair price, social welfare respect and environmental respect. Some main economic actors run the quality acknowledgement as the proof of compliance with the fair trade conditions. Actually the quality acknowledgement doesn't get approved by France or any governments in the world. Lack of the juridical instruments to verify the reality of fair trade quality becomes a danger for the juridical order. The government intervention is required to set up the order for fair trade practices. But, an independent government represents, legally and only, their own citizens. Or, the legislation on fair trade needs the management of the trade operated between the economic actors in North and the small producers in South. That's a reason of seeking a new model of governance to regulate fair trade. Mr. Pascal LAMY calls for the alternational governance which needs the participation of the social society among the governments.

As part of the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act the federal government has added the requirement that all schools receiving Title I funds must have "highly qualified teachers" in every classroom. The term "highly qualified teacher" comes from the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. What exactly is a "highly qualified" teacher? This part of the law is widely debated throughout the fifty states, but most agree that a teacher's subject-matter knowledge and experience result in increased student achievement.(Ansell& McCase, 2003) Some states have made progress in meeting the "highly qualified" requirement of NCLB. However, most states have merely established the criteria for determining if a teacher is highly qualified (Keller, 2003). The Education Trust has called for clarification from the Department of Education on the guidelines for the teacher quality provision of the law. Ten states have put into law all the requirements of the federal law, 22 have done some work toward that goal, and 18 states still have a long way to go (Keller). With so many states still grappling with compliance to the law, this study may well give policy makers in those states options that are being used in other states to consider. In addition, the study focuses on middle school and the possible impact these requirements will have on staffing of middle schools. Policy makers would do well to look at this aspect closely since middle school is often where education "loses" many students to dropping out. Also, the middle school is where the greatest number of non-certified teachers are working and where the greatest percentage (44%) of teachers are teaching without even a minor in the subject they teach (Ingersoll, 2002).