Describes strategies to build and support coalitions for services in an era of diminished public and private resources. It becomes necessary to redefine the client, the community, and the agency or organization to develop appropriate roles for each component in the current social and economic climate. (SLD)

Storytelling is the most powerful activity people can engage in to build community, because storytelling is how new empowering ideas are shared. Stories structure the inner landscape from which behavior is born. This guide to storytelling in the context of community building begins with a discussion of the importance of stories, with many…

Describes and explains the process adopted by one community group in its attempt to conceptualize, design, and implement training programs for the preparation and development of community workers. (CT)

Although this paper identifies the various reasons for project failure, it also highlights the principles and practices related to project success. The paper attempts to strike a positive note concerning steps to take to increase the probability of successful project implementation and to suggest more realistic attitudes and expectations toward…

This document presents a set of ten steps that can be used by a wide range of concerned people to mobilize a community to solve problems connected with the growing population of underachieving minority youth. Step I, "The Initiation," outlines how to develop a coalition to assure a strong foundation for mobilization efforts. Step II,…

A 5-phase plan was initiated in New York's Schuyler County to develop a Community Resources Development (CRD) program which would bring about communication, educate citizens, and build leadership. This was a joint effort involving county citizens and organizations, a county extension agent, a regional CRD specialist, the resources at both the land…

"Place-based assistance" is not a new concept. Asking what people want and finding ways to give it to them sounds simplistic, but it can result in "win-win" solutions in which everyone involved benefits. This document is a guide to using networking and surveys of residents to determine community needs. Some case studies show…

This report describes a project initiated at Westlawn Junior High School, Edmonton (Canada), in which the Community Development Office of Capital Health (CDO) worked with students using the asset-based community building approach. Focus was on the discovery, connection, and mobilization of the students' assets and gifts and connecting these with…

The Pew Partnership works with local and national partners to design and implement new solutions to social problems, analyze local leadership for action, and research and disseminate cutting edge strategies for urban improvement. Interviews were conducted with 65 people in 9 communities participating in the Pew Partnership to examine their ways of…

Describes the Cooperative Alternative Program (CAP), Coleman (Texas), an example of the way a rural high school for at-risk students has established a sense of community while improving the achievement of its rural students. This case study shows how CAP faced its economic and collaborative challenges. (SLD)

Part of an effort to increase the capacity of local citizens to address critical issues facing their communities, this paper reports on a project to develop and test a replicable process for organizing community forums at community colleges. Following introductory remarks, the first section discusses the role of the community college in community…

This handbook provides instructions to help communities form county rural development (CRD) committees. Guidelines are applicable to committee work in general and to community involvement in identifying and discussing local problems, determining community needs, setting goals, identifying available resources, securing adequate leadership, and…

This booklet is one of five in the Peace Corps (PC) Programming and Training Guidelines collection that provides agency-wide programming and training guidance for PC staff and project partners. It offers PC staff and others a step-by-step approach for designing or revising a project, beginning with analyzing the situation in a country and ending…

This booklet is one of five in the Peace Corps (PC) Programming and Training Guidelines collection that provides agency-wide programming and training guidance for PC staff and project partners. It shows how to design and implement a monitoring and evaluation (M&E) plan for PC projects. Chapter 1 provides an overview of M&E, including what…

The need to develop "family capital" (the attributes and skills that enable families to carry out their economic, social, and nurturing functions) in inner-city neighborhoods is the focus of this background briefing report. Part I of the report describes the characteristics and causes of distressed communities and their impact on families, and…