Welcome to the Center for Education Policy, Applied Research, & Evaluation

CEPARE’s mission is to provide independent, nonpartisan research to inform education policy and practice, and to systematically identify, analyze, and continually evaluate education strategies that significantly improve education outcomes for students in the context of fiscal realities. 

Since 1989, the Center for Education Policy, Applied Research & Evaluation (CEPARE) at the University of Southern Maine has assisted school districts; state education officials, policy makers, and agencies and organizations by conducting and disseminating research, evaluation, and policy studies.   CEPARE’s applied research and evaluation work has resulted in over 80 reports.  Our research has been used to inform both policy and practice at the state and school district level.

CORE BELIEFS:  We believe that

• Public education must be guided by the moral imperative to offer every child a first-rate education, and equity in public education must be a central and driving consideration in education policy and in education practice.
• Education initiatives are too often driven by opinion and conjecture; rigorous education research is needed to systematically assess the impacts of education initiatives over time.
• Greater sharing of research across disciplines and geographic divisions and through collaborations and partnerships among stakeholder groups invested in education will promote an increased understanding of which education strategies are most beneficial in differing circumstances across the many divergent learning settings.
• Ongoing systematic evaluation should be part of all education enterprises.
• Research and evaluation are powerful tools for improving policy and practice.

• To inform education policy and practice through evidence-based research.
• To offer practical guidance to state education officials, policy makers, and to school districts regarding school reform issues.
• To continue to serve as a consultative resource for education leadership regarding diverse education issues and challenges that arise.
• To inform the education community and the public regarding the ongoing condition of K12 public schools in Maine.
• To use evidence from research studies to enhance the dialogue on emerging or recurring topics of interest.
• To contribute to the body of knowledge on relevant education issues and to increase public awareness and discourse across Maine and the nation.

IN COLLABORATION with our colleagues at the University of Maine at Orono, CEPARE co-directs and hosts the southern Maine site of the Maine Education Policy Research Institute (MEPRI), an institute jointly funded by the Maine State Legislature and the University of Maine System.   This institute was established to conduct studies on education policy and public education for the Maine Legislature and, since 1995, has provided policymakers with nonpartisan data, policy research, and evaluation.  For additional information about MEPRI, please visit http://www2.umaine.edu/mepri/ .

OUR FOCUS:   To date, CEPARE/MEPRI research has focused on a wide-range of school reform, school finance issues, and other education topics which include:

• The development and assessment of the state education funding formula
• The condition of K12 public education in Maine
• High-performing, highly efficient schools
• School district consolidation
• Special education costs
• Student assessment systems
• An evaluation of the state-wide one-to-one laptop initiative
• The four-day school week