Eighty-six "at-risk" students (aged 14-16) participated in an 8-week program of immersion in vocational training, academics, counseling, recreation, and performing arts. Students improved in academic areas and in their understanding of the world of work, but self-concept measures showed a decline and the program's impact on dropout likelihood was…

Describes the development of the Early Adolescent/Child Care Helper Program, which is designed to meet the needs of both young adolescents and preschool children. (BB)

This article describes seminars in which newly blind persons, blind senior citizens, deaf-blind individuals, or couples in which one spouse is blind develop self-confidence and motivation to learn new skills and adjust to vision loss. Procedures for planning and running such programs are outlined, along with steps to ensure lasting benefits. (PB)

A group of students with emotional disturbances generated a list of rewards and received rewards after accumulation of points determined by the daily behavior of each group member. Use of this motivator and behavior management tool seemed to increase the cohesiveness of the group and prosocial behavior of its members. (JDD)

The Government Accounting Standards Board notion of service efforts and accomplishments reporting is one step in a process of managing for results that includes strategic planning, development and use of performance measures of managing ongoing programs, and outputs to budgetary appropriation. Reports a trial application to one school district.…

A Wisconsin advocacy model for gifted education programs is presented, emphasizing ongoing collaboration and dissemination to most effectively utilize meager resources. Essential elements of the dissemination design are identified, including use of regional sites, requiring participation of an administrator on the team, group problem solving, and…

College alumni associations are using a variety of approaches to improve alumni participation. Surveying alumni for needs and preferences can be fruitful. Program ideas include career planning, parent programs, community service, student relations activities, and high school recruitment. Qualitative and quantitative evaluation is crucial to…

This keynote address states that early intervention services must consider more than professional analyses in their planning. It describes findings from focus group discussions with Latino families of children with disabilities, emphasizing the need to match early intervention services with parent expectations and goals, and the need for services…

Recommendations for planning a successful training workshop for college alumni volunteers include assuring the association is organized and the program well timed; making sure everyone agrees to budget and/or financial commitments; using seasoned volunteers to conduct a feasibility study and determine training needs; making training enjoyable; and…

This paper reviews service delivery models used with learning-disabled adolescents and proposes two alternative models of services. Components of an effective program include intensive basic skills instruction, explicit instruction in coping skills, successful completion of classes required for graduation, and planning for postgraduation life. (PB)

Described is the successful development of an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program in a school system in Maryland. The importance of training both staff and the community are stressed. (CW)

Fifteen innovative ideas for activities by student alumni associations, based on existing programs, are described briefly. They include activities for career awareness and development, fund raising, student fun, service to alumni families, alumni orientation to the current campus community, graduation festivities, and service to the community.…

The founder of "Teach for America," a nonprofit organization to recruit capable but undirected college seniors for a two-year commitment to teaching, has successfully brought in a corps of graduates with a high level of commitment, academic excellence, varied skills, and a better minority representation to teach in difficult-to-staff…

This study analyzed a program to involve six institutionalized adults with mild mental retardation in their transition to community living. The program involved interviewing to determine their community living lifestyle preferences, identifying strongest preferences, and teaching subjects to obtain preference availability information from group…

At George Mason University (Virginia), a consulting firm designed a program to train university administrators to deal with the media effectively. On-camera simulations, followed up with practice sessions in the university's telecommunications department, were an effective method of preparing for difficult media questions. (MSE)