The Laboratory for Student Success (LSS) facilitates the transformation of research-based knowledge into useful tools that can be readily integrated into the educational reform process both regionally and nationally. A major LSS task is to address the resource, professional development, and technical assistance needs of its partners in the field. Therefore, staying closely connected to the needs of grassroots professionals in the mid-Atlantic region is imperative. By listening to teachers, administrators, and superintendents through annual needs assessment surveys, the LSS is able to design projects, products, and services that directly meet the needs of educators and students in the mid-Atlantic region. 
 

The conceptual framework for evaluating LSS operations is based on the integration of ongoing needs assessments into the process of (a) estimating the value and the utility of current strategies, and (b) identifying emerging priorities. Quality assurance is thus a key component of the planning-implementation-evaluation paradigm and guides the LSS in refinement of its scope of work. This approach allows the LSS to be responsive to client and stakeholder feedback. 

The 1995 Needs Assessment Survey formed the basis for the development of LSS programs and activities designed to have the greatest impact on student success. The 1996 Needs Assessment Survey, as well as the initial evaluation of the effect-iveness of the LSS' activities, led to the modification of current strategies and the identification of new priorities. For example, respondents of the 1996 survey rated professional development of school staff as a high priority for future LSS programs. In response to this rating, the number of professional development conferences and work-shops hosted by the LSS nearly doubled from 39 in 1996 to 65 in 1997. 

The 1997 Needs Assessment Survey was designed to gather information from educators in the field about the school improvement needs of the mid-Atlantic region. The primary goals are to (a) acquire data on the quality of programs delivered by federal, state, regional, and local assistance service providers; and (b) target the technical assistance and professional development needs and service priorities of educators responsible for implementing systematic reform.

The Needs Assessment Survey was conducted in November, 1997. The survey consisted of 37 items, which respondents were asked to rate on a 5-point scale, ranging from 1 = "very low" to 5 = "very high," according to the overall quality of current programs, facilities, and educational practices in the region, and present and future priorities for school improvement. The survey was mailed to a random sample of approximately 3,500 superintendents, school administrators, and teachers in the region. 

Of the surveys returned and processed for analysis, nearly two-thirds of the survey respondents were elementary and secondary school teachers and administrators, and the remaining one-third were superintendents. Slightly more respondents were from rural schools (45%) than from suburban (39%) or urban (13%) schools. More than 36% of the respondents were individuals with 10 or more years of experience in their current position, and the majority of the respondents had been in their current position for more than 5 years. 

Program Quality Results 

For each of the 37 items, the percentage of respondents rating program quality as either 4 = "high" or 5 = "very high" was calcula The 37 items were then rank-ordered by the obtained percentages. The highest percentages represent the highest rated programs with respect to quality. Using this approach, it was possible to focus on those programs perceived as being of the highest relative quality by the survey respondents, as presented in Table 1. 

Program Priority Results  

For each of the 37 items, the percentage rating the future priority of programs as 4 = "high" or 5 = "very high" was calculated.&nbThe program items were again rank-ordered by the obtained percentages, with the highest percentage presenting the highest priority for future programs, as shown in Table 2 . 

The LSS has responded to these expressed priorities through the development of a number of products, services, and events. For example, the popular LSS Partnerships publication series offers concrete suggestions for communication between parents and teachers, thus addressing the priority for "active involvement of parents in school activities." Another publication, Achieving Student Success: A Handbook of Widely Implemented Research-Based Educational Reform Models, fulfills the expressed need for "program evaluation," as does a series of LSS conferences and workshops examining the implementation of comprehensive educational reform programs. 

Many of the items listed as "high priority" for future programs (Table 2), such as "early efforts to prevent problems in reading," are also highly rated among current programs (Table 1). This pattern indicates that LSS has been successful in developing high-quality programs that are geared to meet the needs of its clients and stakeholders. 

Comparison of the 1996 and 1997 Needs Assessment Survey results showed that respondent ratings of both the quality of current LSS programs and the priorities for future programs remained relatively unchanged.  In fact, the four programs rated the highest in quality by the 1997 survey were also rated the top four programs in 1996.  Similarly consistent findings were reported for the program priority ratings among the 1996 and 1997 surveys as well. 

The development of LSS priorities and strategies is an evolving process in which needs assessment plays an important role. The 1997 Needs Assessment Survey is the most recent effort to identify the priorities of LSS clients and stakeholders and to monitor the quality of the programs, products, and services LSS offers. Through its wide range of activities, the LSS will continue to respond to the needs of educators and students in the mid-Atlantic region. 

For further information on LSS publications or events, contact the LSS Information Services Coordinator at 1-800-892-5550, or check the LSS website at http://www.temple.edu/LSS.