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SWCC Activities

• Assessment & Accountability
• High School Reform, Renewal, Redesign
• Recruitment, Preparation and Retention of Highly Qualified Teachers
• Systems of Support for District Improvement
• Systems of Support for School Improvement
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Center Overview

In 2005, the U.S. Department of Education selected WestEd as the agency to operate the Southwest Comprehensive Center (SWCC) with RMC Research Corporation and American Institutes for Research (AIR) as subcontractors on this project. The SWCC is designed to provide assistance to the five state departments/offices of education in the Southwest region: AZ, CO, NV, NM and UT. The SWCC has five priority areas: (1)Support states to align assessment and accountability systems with NCLB; (2) Increase states capacity and infrastructure to support district development and improvement; (3)Enhance and support each state's system of support for program improvement in schools; (4)Increase state capacity to recruit, induct and retain quality teachers; and (5)Build state capacity to initiate high school reform. The SWCC is part of a federal network of 16 Regional Comprehensive Centers, each serving individual or clusters of states. The network also includes five Content Centers designed to develop materials and products in support of the Regional Centers. The Comprehensive Centers are charged with building state capacity to implement fully the federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), and specifically to improve student achievement and close achievement gaps. WestEd is a nonprofit research, development, and service agency, working with education and other communities to promote excellence, achieve equity, and improve learning for children, youth, and adults. WestEd and the subcontractors, RMC and AIR each draw on many years of successful experience managing and providing technical assistance for the U.S. Department of Education.