It is often a challenge for adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), as it is for many individuals with disabilities, to participate in activities such as physical education class or community sports with typically developing peers. As such, activities that do not require high skill levels and team environments have been recommended for…

Purpose: The purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate the influence of a community-based, service-coordination and delivery intervention (CONNECT Program) on urban, minority parents' human capital, financial capital, community social capital, and service utilization. Method: This study used a pre-posttest single group design and mixed methods…

Purpose: (1) To compare demographic, mental health, service usage, and emotional and behavioral characteristics and strengths of youth receiving care from depressed versus nondepressed caregivers and (2) to determine whether a community-based program for reducing problematic behaviors and bolstering strengths is equally effective for youth with…

Background: Latinos in the United States are at heightened risk for obesity and health disparities, yet community-based interventions to promote health are limited. Purpose: This research examined the feasibility and efficacy of a culturally relevant obesity prevention program (Vivir Sano), which included stress reduction and behavioral lifestyle…

The purpose of the study was to assess the impact of an educational intervention on prostate cancer screening behavior and knowledge. Participants were 104 African American men, 45 years and older, who had not been screened for prostate cancer with a prostate-specific antigen and/or digital rectal exam within the past year. All participants…

Objective: To describe an innovative school-based intervention to promote healthy lifestyles. To evaluate its effects on children's food habits and to highlight the key components which contribute most to the beneficial effects obtained from children's, teachers' and parents' perspectives. Design: An educational tool to improve personal awareness,…

Postpartum Depression (PPD) occurs at higher rates among impoverished mothers than the general population. Depression during pregnancy is one of the strongest predictors of developing PPD. Research indicates that non-pharmacological interventions are effective in reducing depressive symptoms but engaging and retaining low-income mothers remains a…

Non-formal education (NFE) has a role to play in the education of marginalised groups such as out-of-school adults. NFE is based in the discourse of lifelong learning with its agenda of economic growth and active citizenship. This discourse requires moving beyond traditional conceptualisations of primary, secondary and tertiary education to…

Background: Policies call on after-school programs (ASPs) to serve more nutritious snacks. A major barrier for improving snack quality is cost. This study describes the impact on snack quality and expenditures from a community partnership between ASPs and local grocery stores. Methods: Four large-scale ASPs (serving ~500 children, aged 6-12?years,…

Behaviors that warrant school discipline (e.g., fighting, victimizing peers) is detrimental to school climate and the learning process. This study examines the effectiveness of preventing school disciplinary incidents in middle school through an experiential, social and emotional learning (SEL) program. A community youth development organization,…

"Talk of the Town" is a community led approach to supporting the speech, language and communication (SLC) skills of children and young people, aged 0-19, living in areas of social disadvantage. It is delivered by the Communication Trust. This evaluation reports on a randomised controlled trial undertaken with 2696 pupils in 64 primary…

This study used a nonequivalent group design to evaluate the impact of an emergent literacy intervention on preschool children identified with early reading difficulties. Thirty-five children were compared with 39 typically developing classroom peers on various reading measures in a community-based project--"Mission I'm Possible" (MIP),…

Background. High overweight and obesity prevalence has instigated many programs to improve children's health. Farm to School (F2S) is a grassroots-organized program that seeks to improve children's dietary habits, especially fruit and vegetable (FV) consumption, through various educational activities. Long-term goals include reducing obesity…

Objective: This study assessed the effectiveness of mutual aid groups for high school students. Methods: A quasi-experimental design was applied to 242 adolescents, where every other adolescent was assigned to the intervention or the control condition. The study evaluated the influence of implementing mutual aid groups in decreasing perceived risk…

This study combined the African American tradition of oral storytelling with the Hispanic medium of "Fotonovelas." A staggered pretest posttest control group design was used to evaluate four Storytelling Slide Shows on health that featured community members. A total of 212 participants were recruited for the intervention and 217 for the…