This paper draws on narrative inquiry research: an epistolary autoethnography from a daughter to her mother written to communicate a story of powerlessness and oppression and an immense desire for liberation. The researcher sought to make meaning from her personal experience and to understand the impact of the Direct Provision System on her life.…

Emerging adults in rural, boom-bust economies face unique challenges, especially in employment and education. Drawing on emerging adult and social disruption hypothesis literatures, this study examined four primary research questions. First, how do emerging adults in rural boom-bust towns in southwest Wyoming understand and experience boom-bust…

The study examined the difficulties encountered by parents of children with ASD in rural communities in Nigeria. The lack of sufficient healthcare facilities and proficient practitioners in rural locations hinders the availability of early intervention services. The cultural beliefs and misconceptions surrounding ASD exacerbate stigma,…

This paper reported results from a qualitative analysis of assets and supports disclosed in the narratives of adult basic education students. These students were identified as exemplary by their instructors for academic achievement, hours of program attendance, or community service. Themes were identified using the "Four Pillars"…

Little research has been conducted on women living with HIV with a focus on caregiving. This paper explores data that emerged in a study examining caregiving networks among people living with HIV in the Prairies in Canada. Photovoice provided a methodology for data collection. The narratives presented suggest that while these women's lives are…

Hardly anyone can have failed to pick up on the recent flurry of stories in the national press about the Big Society, sparked off by Dame Elisabeth Hoodless's remarks that funds for volunteers are disappearing at an alarming rate, and that this is undermining the very idea of a "Big Society". At the same time, under the government's…

The present study examines the interactions within 4 Facebook groups devoted to supporting people who self-injure. Content analysis was used to analyze posts made to the group during the 3-month period of the study to explore the nature of interactions and the frequency of themes. High prevalence themes included responses to verbal abuse against…

The specific aim of this research study was to gain knowledge regarding beliefs about aging, in order to develop future, priority, educational, and aging-related opportunities in Kansas. The study included six focus groups with a self-selected sample of Kansans born during the years 1946-1964 (N = 39). The main themes that surfaced included the…

Economic changes and the machinations of the treadmill of production have dramatically reduced the number of jobs provided by extractive industries, such as mining and timber, in the United States and other affluent nations in the post-World War II era. As the importance of these industries to national, regional, and local economies wanes,…

The South Dakota Legislature, being aware of the impact of culture on a stable economy, desires to stimulate, encourage, and give recognition and assistance to the arts which, in order to grow and flourish, depend upon freedom, imagination and individual initiative. While the development of the arts has long been considered a matter of local…

Youth develop across multiple domains that are relevant to academic success. While schools focus primarily on cognitive development, many of the supports young people receive in other developmental areas come from community-based out-of-school programming. Stimulation of development in these additional key areas builds skills that support…

The process of change in any organization must begin at the top. Leadership experts describe successful organizations as those that are guided by a leader who exhibits appropriate behavior and vision for the organization and its employees. In other words, leaders must model the behavior and attitudes they want to see from staff members. Therefore,…

This paper considers how community literacy programs factor into broader economies of literacy development. The author analyzes two Appalachian community literacy projects, Shirley Brice Heath's ethnographic project in the Carolina Piedmont and Highlander Research and Education Center's organizing efforts with the Appalachian People's Movement, to…

For more than 40 years, Penta Career Center in Perrysburg, Ohio, has successfully served thousands of high school students and adults from Northwest Ohio. Calling a converted 1949 United States Army Depot building home, Penta serves students from 16 surrounding school districts, and offers programs in six core areas: arts and communications;…

Social support from intimate and confiding relationships has received a great deal of attention; however, the study of the community as a relevant source of support has been comparatively lacking. In this article, we present a multidimensional measure of community support (Perceived Community Support Questionnaire, PCSQ). Through exploratory and…