Minnesotans value education. Education is the largest financial investment in the state budget, and those investments place Minnesota students among the top performers in the nation. Still, substantial gaps in opportunity and performance persist. The three purposes of the needs assessment were to: (1) Describe infrastructure, capacity, and costs of program evaluation and educational assessment; (2) Identify unmet needs; and (3) Evaluate how "CAREI" might contribute a solution. This report summarized the findings of our study. It also provides a brief summary of how the "Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement" (CAREI) might be used to network and leverage personnel, expertise, and resources to solve pressing problems. "CAREI" can contribute to expand infrastructure and capacities that meet the needs of education in the state with a high return on investment. [This document was prepared by Senior Editors Theodore J. Christ and Kimberly Gibbons with data collection, analysis and reporting by Jane Fields and Beverly Dretzke.].