Like British morning programs of recent decades, upstate New York program encourages parents and community residents to get involved in children's education. Parents and community residents--watercolor artists, auto mechanics, doll collectors, and others--are welcomed and valued in schools. Program's purpose is learning, not entertainment. Topics…

Describes Canada's efforts in sustainable forestry, which refers to management practices that ensure long-term health of forest ecosystems so that they can continue to provide environmental, social, and economic benefits. Describes model forests, community forests, and demonstration forests and lists contacts for each of the projects. (KS)

Social entrepreneurs are private citizens who play critical roles in bringing about catalytic changes in the public sector agenda and the perception of social issues. Factors that make their projects--such as the Partnership for a Drug-Free America and Earth Day--successful include problem complexity, credibility, and a commitment to a collective…

Best preschool programs provide both developmentally appropriate curricula and school-based family support services. This article describes four exemplary, innovative, and low-cost early education programs in Kentucky, Colorado, Iowa, and Florida that integrate family support, day care, and health and social services. These districts had visionary…

Addresses the increasing lack of communal dimensions in U.S. culture and the new impetus toward community building as a school reform initiative and an answer to social problems. (SK)

Describes a study to identify the concerns, issues, and questions about middle-level education in four communities. Survey data gathered from teachers, parents, and the general public were clustered into manageable categories. Major concerns included a pervasive sense of anonymity, puzzling curriculum, lack of rigor or challenge, sociability and…

Discusses how one community middle school, whose creation was the result of involvement of the town it resided in, became a lifesaving facility for many of the town's residents when disaster struck. Examines the community-wide effort in the school's construction planning and its benefits to the community after its completion. (GR)

The concept of community is significant in the discourse on children's development and learning. In view of the continuing disintegration of childrens' supportive communities, efforts to reform and improve American education must include ways to reinvent and revive learning communities. This is the central work of the School Development Program…

A few years ago, the Williamson County (Tennessee) School District developed a strategic plan to encourage volunteers' participation. The plan includes a vision, goals, and objectives; strategies for increasing community involvement; recognition for all volunteers (via the Shining Apple Award); and program evaluation. (MLH)

Reviews the Oregon Transition Support Initiative, an ongoing research and implementation project that prevents recidivism by helping stakeholders help incarcerated youth return to their communities. Discusses the transition process as the working relationships that together accomplish the common goal of seeing that youth offenders learn the life…

A community-based interdisciplinary health professions education project involving medicine, nursing, and allied health provides experiential learning opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students. Committed leadership, communication, and active community involvement are keys to success. (SK)

Community-based agencies (extension, women's association, public health department) initiated a health promotion project using adult learning approaches (experiential learning, storytelling, and networking) to enable participants to examine their experiences of health and factors affecting health in their communities. Assessment tools were…

An ethnographic study of Kalhor nomads in Iran showed that the government's top-down approach to development and weak local institutions obscure the impact of technology on women and poor people. Despite rhetoric about participation, these groups are not consulted about their needs, priorities, and interests. (SK)

Presents the steps necessary for creating a successful facility master plan, including the purpose and use of a steering committee and the need for a comprehensive database that includes a community/school profile. Explains community involvement in plan development, and outlines the steps necessary for preparing a final facility plan for…

The Edgecombe County (North Carolina) Schools have successfully adopted HOSTS (Help One Student To Succeed), a nationally recognized language-arts program that uses individualized, prescriptive learning through one-to-one mentoring by teams of volunteers. HOSTS begins where Reading Recovery leaves off and helped 240 low-performing students improve…