Needs assessments enable program developers to address the unique characteristics of their target audiences and their environment. They have a number of useful purposes for AIDS (Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) education and training. They inform program planning and implementation, provide baseline data, increase the potential for…

A British study verified whether the educational participation of Ford Motor Company's manual workers significantly increased following introduction of the Employee Development and Assistance Program (EDAP) and identified the features that contributed to its success. Over the past 15 years, studies of working class adults' educational…

In 1974, the Career Development and Renewal Program (CDRP) was created to train staff in the Dallas County Community College District (DCCCD) for placement in three new District colleges. Currently, the program offers renewal and career-path training to staff; provides for a bank of personnel for internal promotion opportunities; and broadens…

School staff members need continuing opportunities to learn and grow because the waves of social change strike them first and most powerfully. Research on effective schools tends to stress staff development as crucial. School boards are involved in the development of their staff. A staff development program of broad scope and sharp focus can…

The purpose of the planning process at Catonsville Community College (CCC) in Maryland is to improve communication and decision making within the organization, to capitalize on the diverse talents and skills of the faculty and staff, and to use the limited resources of the college in ways that best fulfill the institution's mission. The five major…

This report presents many of the typical questions with which college deans of instruction will be confronted in planning a competency-based technical education (CBTE) system. Under each of 10 major questions that explore the issues of CBTE, a number of more specific questions are listed. The 10 major questions concern the overall approach,…

Three small rural school districts in Montana and Wyoming used alternate school day scheduling to make time for staff and curriculum development inservice programs. The schedule of one short and four long days delivered the instructional time of 175 6-hour days each year. Benefits of alternate scheduling included time for regular inservice…

This instructional module on program planning for older adults is one in a block of 10 modules designed to provide the human services worker who works with older adults with basic information regarding the aging process. An introduction provides an overview of the module content. A listing of general objectives follows. Four sections present…

Most recent initiatives to improve teaching may be characterized as top-down, compliance-oriented policies that seek to increase accountability and regulate different aspects of the profession. Little regard has been paid to the development of assistance programs at the state level that aim at building capacity among teachers and local school…

Middle level schools have special needs because of the characteristics of the age group served. Staff development is crucial for middle schools. Its purposes and major planning components are presented in this paper. Most mid-level educators were prepared for elementary or high school teaching and have a limited knowledge of early adolescent…

The development of a language development program for limited-English-proficient Spanish-speaking students in a New Mexico junior high school are described. Initially, the program was organized in response to sudden heavy enrollment of non-English-speaking students, and was intended to teach them English. In subsequent years, through application…

Maryland's decade of experience in providing programs for gifted and talented students indicates that response to the needs of such students has been strongest when federal, state, and local policy and financial commitments were complementary. The notion that federal financial support is not necessary and may even be counterproductive is…

The guide, developed by the Secondary Transition and Employment Project (STEP) in Idaho, is intended for agency or school staff developing a community-based vocational training program for persons with mild, moderate, or severe disabilities. The guide is intended to be used with three available video tapes. The first module's goal is the…

Presented is Washington's program plan for operating and administering Public Law 94-142, The Education of All Handicapped Children Act, and the Preschool Incentive Grant Proposal for fiscal years 1987-1989. The plan contains submission statements and certificates, written comments received from the public regarding the state plan, and a right to…

Designed as a forum for the exchange of practical and theoretical information regarding all aspects of personal, professional, and institutional development in postsecondary education, this journal contains articles, announcements, and resource reviews. The first issue of 1983 includes the following articles: "Institutionalizing Staff, Program and…