In rural Appalachian communities of southeast Ohio, where generational poverty is high, communities and schools worked together to both create meaningful learning experiences and ensure that basic needs were met before students started the school year. Families of students who attended Summer Advantage--a 21-day summer school program for…

Students and their families living in poverty need support to reach their potential through education. In small, rural communities, such as the Appalachian area of Ohio, strong partnerships work to mutually support educators, families, and students. Educational service centers work with governmental agencies, state grants, local community…

This descriptive study involving over 50 students, both undergraduate and graduate nursing students. A modified Community Service Attitudes Scale was given pre and post service-learning activity to the students. Students overwhelmingly reported an increase in their cultural awareness, their ability to work effectively with others and their feeling…

This study sought to understand the influence of participation in a physical activity-based, social and emotional learning-focused after-school. Undergraduate students (N = 25) from a variety of ethnic backgrounds participated in semi-structured interviews and regular journaling. Data were analyzed inductively and deductively through the lens of…

The purpose of this pilot study was to measure the effects of experiential learning on graduate students' use of facilitative language techniques (FLTs) to support language development in young children from a high poverty population. Seven CSD graduate students who participated in a language seminar received direct instruction in and experiential…

As persistent inequities in health gained increased attention nationally due to COVID-19 and racial justice protests in 2020, it has become increasingly important to evaluate both the process and outcomes associated with coalition-based efforts to address health inequities. "The Two Georgias Initiative" supports coalitions in 11 rural…

4-H youth development programs throughout the United States can be planned and delivered more effectively in their states by assessing demographic data and following research-based theories and models of positive youth development. A review of the research literature determined current youth development theories and models to effectively guide…

Partnerships between communities and institutions of higher education have become central ways in which post-secondary students and faculty members interact with teachers and students in community environments. These partnerships can be challenging to develop, however, particularly given the numerous and shifting priorities of both schools and…

The Ready for School, Ready for Life initiative in Guilford County, North Carolina, aims to support interconnected programs and services for young children and their families with the goal of having children enter kindergarten ready for learning. The initiative aims to strengthen connections among existing programs in Guilford County and provide…

Background: The perspectives of community partners about their experiences working with medical students and how service-learning experiences affect the communities they serve remains understudied. Objective: This study addressed gaps in the literature by reporting on in-depth interviews conducted with community partners who participated in a…

Experimental research demonstrates sustained high-quality early care and education (ECE) can mitigate the consequences of poverty into adulthood. However, the long-term effects of community-based ECE are less known. Using the 1991 NICHD Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (n = 994; 49.7% female; 73.6% White, 10.6% African American,…

This study evaluated a self-report survey assessing school professionals' perceptions of school and community mental health supports and services. Based on responses from 560 school professionals, findings provide support for the measure's internal structure and ability to distinguish low-poverty and high-poverty schools. Practitioners and…

AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteers in Service to America) engages more than 8,000 individuals annually to support community efforts to overcome poverty. AmeriCorps VISTA members serve full time for a year at nonprofit organizations or local government agencies to build the capacity of these organizations to carry out programs that alleviate poverty.…

Increasingly, leaders of youth-serving organizations voice concern about low Latinx participation (Borden et al., 2006), often recognizing that poor participation reflects a need to develop new capacities and inclusive practices (Perkins et al., 2007). The authors were asked to summarize the scholarship on Latinx participation in youth development…

Introduction: This article investigates an early STEM family engagement program offered during the pre-kindergarten (pre-k) year. Pre-k is an important juncture for community organizations to support children's STEM engagement and parental involvement in informal STEM learning. We evaluated a program called Teaching Together STEM, which offers a…