Reports on education performance and improvement that were commissioned and funded by the Business Education Alliance of Alabama helped earn Governmental Research Association national recognition at the GRA’s annual conference in Pittsburgh.
The award announced Tuesday recognized studies by the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama, including two that were commissioned by the BEA – Obstacles into Opportunities published in 2014 and Teachers Matter published in 2015.
“The Business Education Alliance has one main goal – to improve public education and build a first-class workforce for Alabama,” BEA Chairman and President Joe Morton, Ph.D., said. “We immediately turned to PARCA for their expertise and never regretted it.”
Obstacles into Opportunities details steps deemed necessary for Alabama to meet a goal of a high school graduation rate of at least 90 percent by the year 2020, a vital key to expand Alabama’s economy.
Teachers Matter outlines a new way of thinking how public education recruits, rewards, and retains high-quality teachers.
PARCA received the GRA award for “Outstanding Policy Achievement” for its work on a state government issue and evaluating the progress of Alabama’s strategic plan for education improvement, PARCA said in a statement. The award was determined based on several criteria, including displaying tangible improvements in public policy and/or cost savings resulting from research and thorough assessments of student academic performance.
The GRA was founded in 1914 as the national organization of men and women involved in government research. The annual awards competition is conducted to “recognize exceptional research on state and local government issues performed by staff members of governmental research agencies,” PARCA said.