In 1994 the Ford Foundation launched the Rural Community College Initiative (RCCI) as a "national demonstration project to help community colleges in distressed regions move their people and communities toward prosperity. It challenged community colleges to become catalysts for economic development and supported aggressive efforts to increase…

Developing countries in Asia and the Pacific are undergoing a critical period in rural development. As part of a plan for integrated rural development, education has shifted its priorities to equalizing access to educational opportunities and improving quality of instruction. Representatives from Bangladesh, China, India, Iran, Malaysia, Nepal,…