This guide was prepared to fill the need for literature on the formation and functions of citizen committees. It is designed for mayors, other public officials, and citizen leaders who are responsible for creating committees and for citizens who serve on committees. Types of citizen committees are defined and classified according to primary…

This paper, the fourth in a series of five on the current state of citizen education, examines citizen participation in contemporary democracy. The content is presented in four parts. The first covers the areas of citizen participation and levels of analysis and includes the domains of citizenship, citizenship as behavior, and micro and macro…

The state of New South Wales (NSW) ceded the Canberra area to the Commonwealth in 1911 as the Australian Capital Territory (ACT), but maintained responsibility for education in the region until 1974, when the territory became responsible for its own educational system. ACT's Independent Education Authority came into being in large part as the…

Although increasing numbers of organizations are speaking out on behalf of children, politicians need to hear first-hand from families about their concerns for their children. This book provides parents and others with skills necessary to organize effectively and speak out on issues that affect children at home, at school, and in the broader…

This book presents current thinking on the topic of community service programs for youth. Combining theory and research with descriptions of innovative programs and specific recommendations for program design, the volume outlines an approach to service learning that engages youth not only in helping others but also in critical reflection and the…

This volume is the first published historical dictionary of Hispanic American voluntary organizations. The work analyzes the history, purposes, organizational structure, activities, and goals of nearly 200 national and local voluntary organizations and associations. Each entry includes source data. The book focuses on the three major Hispanic…

Almost unnoticed, growing numbers of working poor people are entering politics at the community level in dozens of major cities in Texas and across the United States. These people are unusual because they view politics as a long-term process to build relationships, new institutions, and humane communities. This book tells the story of a new kind…

A sociological field study of the development of a Puerto Rican community organization in an American city (Maplewood, New Jersey), this book describes what happens when an ethnic minority attempts to attain a voice in the affairs of an affluent city. Chapter 1 discusses the study's purpose. Chapters 2 to 11 narrate, from the members' viewpoint…

This text presents the results of a comprehensive, in-depth analysis of the development and activities of the Six School Complex, a group of schools in Northwest Washington, D.C. The Complex was organized in 1975 to cope with population shifts by increasing the number of neighborhood children attending public schools, to broaden and improve the…

This resource paper on the subject of citizen participation, decentralization, and advocacy planning is part of a series designed to supplement undergraduate geography courses. The approach of the paper de-emphasizes inventory or case study reviews of specific participation or advocacy planning projects for a more general conceptual discussion of…

Illustrating components of multi-county organization and emphasizing the rewards of area organization when carefully used as a tool to close the gaps between local, state, and Federal governments, this monograph presents the following five chapters: (1) "Key Factors in Area or Regional Boundry Delineation" (natural physical, biological, and human…

This book explores how community functions in "Bremer," a small rural town in eastern Washington. Human interactions in a variety of contexts are analyzed within a framework that posits three distinct eras of social and economic organization: community-control, mass-society, and information eras. Contexts examined are farming (the…

Although early care and education have gained some momentum in recent years, shortfalls in quality are still pervasive. This book defines the elements of a high-quality system and suggests strategies for improvement. Frontmatter includes a preface, editors' and contributors' biographies, and an introduction entitled "The Changing Context of…

This book contains 11 essays that follow the community service and student loan legislation as it proceeded through Congress. The essays illuminate the policymaking process by explaining the evolution of new national policies and by tracing the history of these two pieces of legislation. The book is organized in three parts. The first two parts…

This document, which is a resource pack for individuals in the United Kingdom who want to become more active citizens, consists of information for group leaders and five learning modules. The section for group leaders contains the following: basic tips on leading a group; strategies for overcoming barriers to learning; glossary; and overview of…