1120 Lincoln St., Suite 1101
Denver, CO 80203
ph: 303-293-2175
fax: 303-293-2178
Denver, CO 80203
ph: 303-293-2175
fax: 303-293-2178
Clients
APA's past and current clients include:
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After School Plus Alliance - RI
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Alabama Attorney General's Office - AL
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Alaska Department of Education - AK
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Arizona Business and Education Coalition - AZ
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Arizona Department of Education - AZ
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Associated School Boards of South Dakota - SD
A broad coalition of education organizations hired APA to complete a statewide adequacy study that examines the level of resources needed for students in the state to meet state performance requirements. APA produced the report and assisted the coalition with presentation of the findings to state and local policymakers.
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Attorney General's Office - NC
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Austin Independent School District - TX
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BellSouth Foundation - NA
APA was hired by the foundation on two different occasions, both involving the role of technology in education. APA was first asked to help create procedures for school districts to incorporate the costs of education technology into their budget plans. Later, APA was asked by the foundation to determine the cost of operating a high quality virtual school.
Click here to view "Costs and Funding of Virtual Schools" |
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Boulder Valley RE-2 School District - CO
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Brighton School District 27J - CO
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Broomfield City Council - CO
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Catalina Foothills School District - AZ
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Center on Education Policy - NA
APA was hired to conduct research and analysis designed to examine the hidden costs of high school exit exams.
"It was a pleasure to work with APA to study the hidden costs of high school exit exams. Due to the quality of APA's initial research and analysis, we received a second grant that culminated in further analysis, and then wide distributions of the findings to key state policy-makers and the news media. APA does very good work." -Jack Jennings, President |
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Coalition for Tennessee's Future - TN
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Colorado School Finance Project - CO
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Colorado Springs School District #11 - CO
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Commonwealth of Pennsylvania - PA
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Connecticut Coalition for Justice in Education Funding - CT
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Council of Chief State School Officers - NA
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Council of State Governments - NA
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David and Lucille Packard Foundation - NA
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Delaware Department of Education - DE
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Delaware Public Policy Institute - DE
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Denver Public Schools - CO
APA was hired by DPS to provide expertise in the development of the district's ProComp teacher compensation system. ProComp is now recognized as a national model for performance-based teacher compensation systems.
APA also was hired to study the impact of charter schools on the DPS system, to identify the appropriate cost weights associated with serving at-risk students, to examine the district's teacher salary schedule, and to identify the potential for the district to engage in new school development. "APA played an important role in making ProComp, Denver's path-clearing teacher compensation system, a reality, not just a good policy idea. Their technical assistance and financial analysis helped solve tough problems that often stand in the way of reform efforts." -Brad Jupp, |
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Donnell-Kay Foundation - CO
APA co-authored a report with the Donnell-Kay Foundation which examines the programs and practices that are currently used in eight Colorado schools that are closing the achievement gap between students of lower and higher socioeconomic backgrounds. The report, called "Profiles of Success," was released in cooperation with the Colorado Department of Education and highlights numerous commonalities across the schools. As a result of this work, the department decided to honor the eight schools as part of its "Commissioner's Cup" for high performing schools. The Department also will create a best practices guide based on the report's main messages.
Click here to view "Profiles of Success: Eight Colorado Schools That Are Closing the Achievement Gap" |
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Education 2010! - Business leaders for education - PA
APA was hired by Education 2010!, a group led by concerned business leaders and CEOs, to conduct a study of the challenges facing the Allentown City School District. APA's study of Allentown, which is Pennsylvania's third largest urban district, gathered together a variety of data on taxes, wealth per student, teacher turnover, student demographics, and performance. Based on this data, APA identified in a final reportsignificant resource challenges facing the district. Drawing on APA's report, Education 2010! presented a case to the Pennsylvania State Legislature that led to the provision of nearly $11 million in new funding for the district.
Click here to view "Identifying and Meeting the Challenges Facing the Allentown School District" |
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Education Association Alliance - TN
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Education Commission of the States - NA
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Florida Postsecondary Education Planning Commission - FL
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Ford Foundation - NA
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Georgia Department of Education - GA
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Greater New Orleans Education Foundation - LA
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Greater Orlando Chamber of Commerce - FL
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Greater Phoenix Leadership - AZ
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Hawaii Educational Policy Center - HI
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Helena Public Schools - MT
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Idaho State Legislature Statewide School Facilities Com. - ID
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Illinois State Board of Education - IL
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Indiana State Legislature - IN
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Indiana State Teacher's Association - IN
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Institute for Wisconsin's Future - WI
APA assisted the Institute in preparing an adequacy study to determine the resources for all Wisconsin schools to meet state and federal performance standards. The completed report was used by the Institute to work with the state legislature and other policymakers.
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Iowa General Assembly School Finance Study Committee - IA
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Jefferson County Public Schools - CO
APA has conducted several studies for this district, which is the largest in Colorado. On several occasions APA has examined the structure of the teacher salary schedule to make it more competitive with other districts. We have also analyzed the district's procedure for allocating staff to schools in order to assure that personnel are assigned consistently with individual school needs. Also as part of this staffing analysis, APA recommended the use of a district-wide, pupil-weighted staff allocation system.
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Jobs for the Future - NA
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Joyce Foundation - NA
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Kansas City School District - MO
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Kansas Department of Education - KS
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Kansas State Board of Education - KS
APA was hired by the state board of Education to conduct a comprehensive study of the resources schools and districts need in order to meet state and federal performance goals. APA's completed study was later forwarded to the Kansas State Legislature.
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Kansas State Legislature - KS
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Kentucky Department of Education - KY
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Kentucky State Legislature - KY
After Kentucky's education system was declared unconstitutional in 1989 by the state's supreme court, APA was hired by the state legislature to develop a new school funding system. APA designed a procedure for allocating state aid to school districts taking into consideration student need, district wealth, and district tax effort. APA's recommendations were later adopted into law, and are still in operation today. |
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Lilly Endowment - NA
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Littleton Public Schools - CO
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Louisiana State Board of Elementary and Secondary Ed (BESE) - LA
APA reviewed the state's school finance system in 1990 and recommended significant changes in the way state aid was distributed to school districts. BESE accepted these recommendations and forwarded them to the state legislature which adopted them in 1994. APA has worked with BESE continuously since 1994 to address a variety of issues, including changes in the state's funding formula following the hurricanes in 2005.
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Maine Department of Education - ME
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Maine Education Association - ME
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Maryland Department of Education - MD
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Mid-Continent Regional Education Laboratory - NA
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Middle Schools Organization - SD
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Minnesota Attorney General's Office - MN
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Minnesota Department of Education - MN
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Minnesota Governor's Office - MN
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Minnesota School Boards Association - MN
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Mississippi Department of Education - MS
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Mississippi State Legislature - MS
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Missouri Education Coalition for Adequacy - MO
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Montana Quality Education Coalition - MT
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Montana School Board Association - MT
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National Board for Professional Teaching Standards - NA
APA staff have served as advisors to the National Board since 1995. APA has lent its expertise to the Board on a variety of matters including development of appropriate legislative support for teachers aspiring to become nationally board certified. APA also provides direct technical assistance to selected states participating in the National Board's program.
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National Center for Education Statistics - NA
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National Center for Family Literacy - NA
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National Center on Education and the Economy - NA
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National Community Education Association - NA
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National Conference of State Legislatures - NA
APA staff regularly present information on education policy developments to NCSL committees, seminars, and conferences. Typical topics addressed by APA staff include teacher quality, teacher compensation, school finance, the cost impact of the No Child Left Behind Act, rural education, charter schools, and at-risk student funding programs. In the past, APA has also worked cooperatively with NCSL staff on a variety of projects related to school funding issues.
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National Education Association - NA
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National School Boards Association - NA
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Nebraska Department of Education - NE
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Nebraska School Finance Review Committee - NE
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Nevada State Legislature - NV
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New American Schools Development Corporation - NA
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New Hampshire State Legislature - NH
APA assisted the state legislature in developing a school finance system that, for the first time, provided significant state aid to local districts. APA's recommendations were later adopted into law.
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New Jersey Department of Education - NJ
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New Mexico Legislative Education Study Committee - NM
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New York Attorney General's Office - NY
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North Dakota Department of Public Instruction - ND
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Office of the Governor - SD
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Office of the Governor - NJ
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Office of the Lieutenant Governor - VT
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Ohio Attorney General's Office - OH
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Ohio Department of Education - OH
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Oklahoma State Legislature - OK
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Oregon Department of Education - OR
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Pennsylvania State Board of Education - PA
In 2007 APA was hired by the Pennsylvania State Board of Education to conduct a statewide costing out study. The purpose of the study was to determine the level of resources that schools and districts across the state need in order to meet state performance expectations, including having 100 percent of students reach proficiency on the state's standardized reading and math assessments by the year 2014. APA successfully completed the study in December 2007. A link to our final report is provided below.
Click here to view "Costing Out the Resources Needed to Meet Pennsylvania Public Education Goals" |
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Piton Foundation - CO
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Plaintiff school districts - WY
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Plaintiff school districts - AZ
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Plaintiff school districts - NJ
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Plaintiff school districts - AR
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Plaintiff school districts - ND
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Plaintiff school districts - MA
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Plaintiff school districts - MN
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Regional Educational Laboratory West - CA
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Rose Community Foundation - CO
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School Administrators of South Dakota - SD
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South Carolina Department of Education - SC
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South Carolina School Boards Association - SC
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South Carolina State Legislature - SC
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South Dakota Coalition of Schools - SD
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South Dakota Education Association - SD
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St. Vrain Valley School District RE 1J - CO
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State Office of Education Accountability - KY
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Steamboat Springs Public Schools - CO
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Summit County School District - CO
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The Charles Stuart Mott Foundation - NA
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The Civic Council of Greater Kansas City - MO
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The Packard Foundation (WestEd) - CA
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The World Bank - NA
APA worked with World Bank personnel to examine Hungary's education funding system. APA prepared a report that made recommendations about levels of support, teacher salaries, and retirement benefits.
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Thornton Commission on Education - MD
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Tri County Alliance for Public Education Adeqacy Study - MI
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Utah Department of Education - UT
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Virginia Department of Education - VA
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Washington Association of School Administrators - WA
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Weld County School District 6 - CO
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West Virginia State Legislature - WV
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Wyoming Attorney General's Office - WY
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York- Center for Community Engagement at York College - PA
APA was hired to conduct a county-wide study of the 16 school districts in York County, Pennsylvania. The study consisted of two key parts. First, APA surveyed and interviewed education and civic leaders from across the county to identify ways in which the districts could improve the way they work together. Second, APA developed a method for comparing resource use (across several staffing, compensation, and spending categories) in the York County districts with other districts around the state that have similar size and demographic characteristics. The purpose of this analysis was to help gauge how efficient or inefficient the York districts appear to be be when compared to their peers.
Click here to view "York County Education Study" "We hired APA to conduct a county-wide analysis to identify new ways for our school districts to work together and improve performance. We also wanted to know how our district resource usage compared with others in our state. APA did an excellent job of gathering information and ideas from our superintendents and other community leaders to provide clear answers to these questions. The firm was easy to work with and provided the independent, impartial, experienced analysis we needed to help move forward our county's education systems." -Suzanne McConkey, Program Director |
News
Posted on: 07/08/2008Pennsylvania has signed into law legislation which, based on APA's recommendations, raises funding for public education by nearly $275 million -- an historic increase for the state. The state also adopted APA's recommendations on how the money can most effectively be distributed to school districts. These recommendations include recognizing higher costs associated with helping children in poverty and English language learners achieve state performance standards. They also include cost adjustments that recognize differences in district size and regional cost of living. Click here for APA's full Pennsylvania costing-out report. Click here for a press release from Pennsylvania Governor Edward Rendell.
Testimonials
"We hired APA to conduct a county-wide analysis to identify new ways for our school districts to work together and improve performance. We also wanted to know how our district resource usage compared with others in our state. APA did an excellent job of gathering information and ideas from our superintendents and other community leaders to provide clear answers to these questions. The firm was easy to work with and provided the independent, impartial, experienced analysis we needed to help move forward our county's education systems."
-Suzanne McConkey, Program Director
York- Center for Community Engagement at York College
York- Center for Community Engagement at York College