The author's career experiences--as an impartial observer of community building, as an advocate working from within urban communities, and as a catalyst working from the outside--have given him a unique perspective into the dynamics of institutional/community engagement. "Basically, they have left me with three overriding convictions. First,…

It is the responsibility of educators to initiate and exert leadership in developing an adaptive system to promote educational change. It is essential that educators be concerned with the total development of an adaptive system in the community, cooperating with other group leaders outside of education, and not feasible educational changes within…

POWER STRUCTURES IN DIFFERENT COMMUNITIES VARY, AND THE MAKEUP OF SCHOOL BOARDS AND STYLE OF SUPERINTENDENTS IN ANY COMMUNITY CAN BE VIEWED AS A REFLECTION OF THESE DIFFERENT POWER RELATIONSHIPS. A COMMUNITY MAY BE CHARACTERIZED BY (1) A DOMINATED POWER STRUCTURE, DOMINATED SCHOOL BOARD MAKEUP, AND SERVANT SUPERINTENDENT STYLE, (2) A FACTIONAL…

The purpose of this study was to analyze the community power structure of the Homestead, Florida, City area. The study examined perceptions of schoolmen, the black, the white and the overall power structure, and the socio-economic beliefs of the members of the community power structure. Results are discussed. (Author)

This report examines the varying degrees of controversy and conflict experienced by two cities when they attempted to desegregate their public schools. Using these experiences as examples, the report shows how education boards can implement desegregation plans to avoid community controversy. The author stresses that issues basic to avoiding…

Questions aimed at better school-community relations through identification of problems and courses of positive action were pursued at a seminar. Positive statements were presented by a citizen, a businessman, and an educator; and discussions were launched from the propositions, problems, and points raised in these papers. This report consists of…

A CONCEPTUAL MODEL FOR STUDYING THE OPERATION OF SOCIAL POWER IN SCHOOL SYSTEMS WAS DEVELOPED ON THE ASSUMPTION THAT A SCHOOL SYSTEM MUST BE UNDERSTOOD IN TERMS OF ITS SUPPORTING ENVIRONMENT. TWELVE DIRECTIONAL HYPOTHESES WERE TESTED TO DETERMINE CORRELATIONS BETWEEN FOUR TYPES OF COMMUNITY POWER STRUCTURES (DOMINATED, FACTIONAL, PLURALISTIC, AND…

FROM AN ANALYSIS OF OVER 2,000 RECONSTRUCTED CONVERSATIONS HELD BY 50 ADULTS IN EACH OF FIVE SCHOOL DISTRICTS, QUESTIONNAIRE RESPONSE DATA WERE OBTAINED TO MEASURE FLOWS OF INFORMATION AND INFLUENCE FROM THE SCHOOL TO THE COMMUNITY FOR OBTAINING PUBLIC SUPPORT. THE STUDY ATTEMPTED TO DESCRIBE (1) PERSONS WHO TALK ABOUT SCHOOLS, (2) THE KINDS OF…

A questionnaire survey of 180 Texas school district superintendents sought to determine both their perceptions of how community power structures influenced school board decisions and their techniques for communicating with their local power structure. The study analyzed four power structure types--monopolistic, multigroup noncompetitive,…

This paper, the third based on a 4-year sociological field study of school-community relations in a factional suburb, analyzes conflict generated by the discrepancy between the perceived and actual norms governing the school board-community relationship. A 3-year effort to develop board responsiveness followed a 7-year period of professional…

Because the ultimate power to control school reform is in the hands of the superintendent or some other similarly positioned administrator, the reforms tend to benefit some student or constituency groups more than others. Judging from the personal characteristics of most superintendents and the political context of the superintendency itself, it…

This guide is the third of four intended to help persons involved in planning new schools, new programs, or other comprehensive change projects. The materials consist of readings to be done individually and exercises to be done individually and/or with a group. Guide 3 looks at the political side of planning new schools by examining the interface…