In these challenging times of cutbacks in public funding for social services programs, parents and grass roots organizations continue to make a difference in their communities with innovative initiatives that are enhancing the lives of people with developmental and physical disabilities. In New York, a track team of speedsters with disabilities is…

Making Connections was the Annie E. Casey Foundation's signature place-based, community-change initiative of the 2000s. It sought to build on previous work and launch an effort focused firmly on the framework of family strengthening. The Foundation started Making Connections in 22 places, focusing eventually on first 10, then seven sites. It…

This module provides a set of quantitative snapshots of the Community Science Workshops (CSWs) to complement the other reports that comprise the CSW Evaluation Portfolio--the Description of CSWs, the Benefits to Youth, and the Evaluation Brief modules--and to build a solid representation of the scope and scale of the CSW's work and…

This paper takes a descriptive look at Community Science Workshops (CSWs). This paper discusses what CSW is, how it arose and spread, how local CSWs are structured and led, and what programs and experiences they offer to youth. (Contains 2 footnotes.)

The people at Inverness Research Associates spent 12 years studying Community Science Workshops (CSW) in California and in six other states. They gathered statistics on the scale, scope, and cost-efficiency of CSW services to youth. They observed youth at work in the shops--taking apart computers, repairing bikes, growing plants, and so on--and…

THE EAST ORANGE EDUCATION PLAZA WAS A PROPOSAL DEVELOPED TO PROVIDE BETTER EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY FOR CHILDREN FROM KINDERGARTEN THROUGH HIGH SCHOOL. THE PHYSICAL STRUCTURE OF THE PLAZA WOULD ENCOURAGE DEVELOPMENT OF A PROGRAM WHICH WOULD APPLY TO ALL KINDS OF STUDENTS. SPECIALIZED TEACHERS AND SPECIAL RESOURCES WOULD BE BROUGHT TOGETHER IN ONE…

The author reviews the need to provide continuity of services to developmentally disabled persons and makes recommendations for the redesign of New Jersey's organizational structure responsible for personal program coordination. Limitations of existing programs are seen to involve administrative, categorical and geographic factors. Proposed are…

A model for planning and evaluating community education programs--Stufflebeam's context, input, process, product (CIPP) evaluation model--was described and field-tested with the community education programs in Lakewood, New Jersey. Community education was defined as a concern for everything that affects the well-being of all citizens within a…

This guide to including children with special needs in community programs in New Jersey begins with a history of the inclusion movement, stressing the importance of personal experiences and beliefs and ways in which inclusion benefits everyone. The following chapter provides answers to 32 frequently asked questions on successful inclusion of…