4-H has long emphasized the importance of civic engagement and community service for positive youth development. One pathway to this ideal is youth action research and evaluation. This article demonstrates how participatory youth research and evaluation can lead to the successful implementation of community action projects. It describes the…

This article describes a model of civic engagement based on four key community organizing practices, created at Occidental College and implemented since 2001. The foundations of this model do not include confrontation, mass mobilization, or demonstrations--tactics commonly associated with the term community organizing. This model, instead,…

This article reflects on the school's role in the building of citizenship, especially in socially vulnerable contexts. We argue, and try to show, that effective participation in decision-making processes is a key tool to promote conditions that help in social transformation and the formation of active citizenship. We offer a brief description of…

Explores why service-learning students have only rarely been engaged directly as neighborhood organizers, then employs John Dewey's understanding of democracy to analyze one program which has succeeded in making widespread use of college students as front-line organizers. Describes how the complementarity between what students do at their…

Aurora, a village of 147 residents in north central Kansas, was the focus of a 1978 investigation of the community development potential for Kansas rural villages. Students and staff from the University of Kansas School of Social Welfare worked with community residents to identify three programs the village wanted (a recreation program, a…

The general procedures, techniques for implementing, and results of a citizen-based "grass-roots" program in Ohio for the development and analysis of community energy policies are described. The program emphasizes citizen input and employs the nominal group process to build consensus. Small group discussions are used to generate…

This paper reports on the progress of eight Chicago-based community initiatives designed to redefine social services and broaden social responsibility for the development of children and families. The paper has three sections describing: (1) general background on the children, youth, and families initiative; (2) early lessons from an initiative in…

Describes the energy conservation management communication network in the Northeast Georgia Area Planning and Development Commission, a ten-county regional planning agency. The authors state that the use of local citizens and community leaders in the energy conservation planning and program activities demonstrates adult education in action. (MF)

This packet contains documents that provide information about the planning and implementation of a comprehensive plan to address homelessness in cities throughout the U.S. Information on the following components of a comprehensive strategy are included: (1) "Task Forces"; (2) "Assessment Studies"; (3) "Emergency Services"; (4) "Transitional…

The document presents a state-of-the-art review of citizen court watching projects. It examines two particularly well-documented projects, and offers guidelines for citizen effort in court improvement. Citizen court watching is interpreted to include unofficial court monitoring, observation, and recommendation for reform by citizen groups and…

Eight 1980 innovative programs in continuing education are described which won awards from the American College Testing Program and the National University Extension Association. Awards were granted according to programs' transferability, innovativeness, workability, and impact in one of four categories: instructional programs, student services…