In order to address the pervasive trend of under consumption of fruits and vegetables among children, we examined the hypothesis that children would be more likely to select fruits (apple slices, bananas, and oranges) and vegetables (baby carrots) when paired with animal cartoon image than when available without the character image. Tested in a randomized experiment using counterbalancing, products were arranged on two tables at two separate family fun nights held at a local zoo. Animal character produce parings were manipulated by placing one of two animals (tamarin or iguana) next to two of the four fruit or vegetable selections at each table, and by changing when available without the image. In total, 755 produce selections were made. Significantly more products paired with a character were selected (62.38%) than the same products, not paired (37.62%), χ² = 46.32, df = 1, p < .001. The odds ratio of the treatment versus control was 1.66 (i.e., 471/284), indicating that children were 66% more likely to select a snack when paired with an animal cartoon. Study findings highlight the positive impact of animal cartoons on children’s fruit and vegetable snack selections, and results suggest the potential for using animal cartoons to encourage fruit and vegetable selection for children.

Keywords: community health, diet, food retail, health communications, health promotion, interdisciplinary, new media and social media interventions, obesity, social marketing

Allison Karpyn, Michael Allen, Samantha Marks, Nicole Filion, Debora Humphrey, Ai Ye, Henry May, Meryl P. Gardner

Sanctions exacerbate the teacher turnover problem in low-performing schools—but giving teachers more classroom autonomy can help stem the flood. School accountability may be the most controversial and significant of all contemporary U.S. education reforms. The accountability movement began in the 1990s as some states initiated various combinations of incentives and sanctions for schools based on student test scores, under the theory that this combination of carrots and sticks would lead to improvements in school performance. In January 2002, accountability gained major impetus as a nationwide reform with the advent of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), revised in 2016 as the Every Student Succeeds Act.

Keywords: Education, teaching, teachers, ESEA, ESSA, high stakes testing, high-stakes testing, incentives, rewards, sanctions

Richard Ingersoll, Lisa Merrill, Henry May

The past decade has seen considerable debate about how to best evaluate the efficacy of educational improvement initiatives, and members of the educational leadership research community have entered the debate with great energy. Throughout this debate, the use of randomized experiments has been a particularly contentious subject. This study examines the potential benefits, limitations, and challenges involved in using experiments to evaluate professional development for principals.

Keywords: Leadership, principals, professional development, experiment, leadership practice

Eric M. Camburn, Ellen Goldring, James Sebastian, Henry May, Jason Huff

Gaps remain in what constitutes optimal healthcare team training in terms of design and impact. This study utilizes a parallel group randomized design to study the impact of a modified TeamSTEPPS training on resident and nurse attitudes toward teamwork and their adherence to patient safety (PS) protocols. The researchers found that a modified TeamSTEPPS training improved resident and nurse attitudes toward teamwork. However, this improvement did not translate into differences between groups with and without the TeamSTEPPS training in their adherence to PS protocols. Additional research is needed to determine the optimal team-training designs that improve PS. This research was funded by a research grant from the Albert Einstein Society, Philadelphia, PA, and was approved for exemption by Einstein Medical Center Philadelphia campus’s Institutional Review Board. The authors report no declarations of interest.

Keywords: Health, STEPPS, patient, resident care, nursing home, Philly

James P Orlando, Amit Joshi, Merle Carter, Henry May, Charlie Bortle, Patricia White

In partnership with the Delaware Department of Agriculture, this report reflects conversations with more than 45 Delawareans, representing leadership from agriculture, public health, food retailers, economic development, government and civic organizations. Together leaders met to explore policy barriers and program successes and to understand the most pressing challenges and opportunities across the state of Delaware. Home to 2,500 family farms and $8 billion in economic impacts, Delaware’s thriving farming and food leaders outline in the report priorities for future collective action requiring a broad base of leadership across a variety of sectors. Among recommended actions are: 1) Establish a Delaware Farm and Food Policy Council accountable to the governor; 2) Launch a coordinated marketing campaign across multiple sectors to engage Delawareans about the benefits of agriculture’s strength to the state; 3) Pilot a local distribution intermediary to aggregate and distribute local products within Delaware; 4) Create a public-private funding source to support development of food and farming businesses in Delaware; 5) Unify engagement in planning and transportation efforts to improve state infrastructure; 6) Continue to grow and invest in a nationally recognized farm to school program by establishing a farm to school state coordinator position to promote and support additional activities; and 7) Encourage the minimization of food loss and waste by reducing, recovering, and recycling.

Keywords: Health, food, agriculture, farming, farm-to-school, nutrition

CRESP, Delaware Department of Agriculture

This final report in a series presents the results of a four-year independent external evaluation of the impacts and implementation of the scale-up of Reading Recovery, a literacy intervention targeting struggling 1st-grade students.  The evaluation was conducted by the Consortium for Policy Research in Education (CPRE) at the University of Pennsylvania and the Center for Research in Education and Social Policy (CRESP) at the University of Delaware. Reading Recovery is implemented through the collaboration of a network that includes local schools, districts, UTCs, and in some cases state government entities. Through independent evaluation, CPRE/CRESP provide a detailed exploration of the interaction of these collaborators, and of both the strengths of the Reading Recovery program and the challenges it faces.

Keywords: Education, literacy, intervention, evaluation, OSU

Henry May, Philip Sirinides, Abigail Gray, Heather Goldsworthy, Abby Gray, Phil Sirinides

As expectations for research and data to inform educational decision making continue to grow under federal policy, state longitudinal data systems (SLDS) are in place in nearly all states and offer a unique resource for generating evidence to support improvement efforts. However, little is known about whether and how researchers are able to access these data. State processes and procedures for granting researcher access may support or impede the generation of timely and relevant research.  In this paper, we present findings of a content analysis of state education agency (SEA) websites that explain those processes and procedures.  We find great variability in SEA approaches to supporting user requests, transparency of the process, data privacy and security, guidelines for use, and available data. Results are intended to launch a productive dialogue on these issues and promote more consistent and coherent policies that promote evidence-based decision-making, and, ultimately, stronger ties between research, policy, and practice in order to collectively improve educational opportunities and outcomes for all students.

Keywords: Education, data use, knowledge use, knowledge utilization, decision making, data systems

Elizabeth N. Farley-Ripple, Liz Farley-Ripple, Jesse Sheeks, Amanda B. Jennings, Andrew Millin