Needs assessment questionnaires were sent to both social service providers and consumers in Contra Costa County, California. This project was designed with three purposes in mind: to determine the level and gaps in services provision for children in the county; to compare consumer and provider perceptions of children's services in the county; and…

This study is concerned with the participation by Negroes in public recreation programs in 24 suburban communities in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, and the five boroughs of New York City. It is a broadly descriptive study of the activities in which Negroes of all ages participate, as well as of administrative practices and problems…

If a recreation program is to serve all the children in a community, creative alternatives must be provided for the children interested in both people and activity, yet disinterested in competitive sports. (MM)

Several Nebraska communities have recently completed innovative recreation complexes, using a variety of funding sources. (MJB)

A collection of eight articles explains that swimming is but one of the many aquatic sports that can take place in a swimming pool and that aquatic education is becoming an integral part of physical education programs. (MM)

The Sport Foundation, Inc. presented awards to municipal park and recreation management for extraordinary service to their respective communities." (AN)

Described are several approaches, used by park and recreation departments, to incorporating the use of computers for administrative purposes. Cost-cutting measures for program implementation and computer maintenance are also described. (CJ)

The quality of untrained adult leadership is a critical determinant of whether organized athletic competition for children outside of school is beneficial or detrimental. Physical educators have an obligation to become involved directly or indirectly as providers of coaching education for volunteers or by facilitating the development of youth…

The Piers-Harris Children's Self-concept Scale was administered to 224 third- and fourth-grade boys, before and after five weeks of participation or nonparticipation in recreation-league team sports. Pretest scores indicated significant differences in favor of participants, while posttest scores showed no significant differences resulting from the…

This study found that, in the early stages of joint participation in community recreation activities, 19 nondisabled adults expressed cautious yet optimistic attitudes toward developing "friendships" with people with mental retardation. Such friendships are often perceived to be based partly on obligation and/or altruism. (DB)

Including individuals with disabilities into community recreation programs has become more popular recently. The ADA stresses the need for true inclusion, where people with disabilities can actively participate and interact in programs in a meaningful way. The paper describes two special programs that help include individuals with disabilities.…

The present study documented and evaluated steps taken by public mental health administrators to recruit members of underrepresented ethnic minority populations into treatment. By surveying county-level ethnic program specialists in the decentralized California state system, the study identified strategies considered effective for reaching African…

A significant challenge facing the juvenile justice system is the task of transitioning and reintegrating juveniles from youth corrections facilities back into the community. This challenge, in part, is related to determining whether the referred community programs are effective. This article summarizes the literature on the effectiveness of…

Scallywags is a community-based, early intervention programme for young children (aged 3-7) with behavioural, emotional and social problems, which integrates work in the home and school with a parenting curriculum and direct work with children. A pre-post intervention study across multi-sites of 340 participants is reported. Using standardised…

Materials are presented from a 1994 meeting on expanding community connections of the six-state Magnolia Circle Outreach Project, which fosters networking between families and professionals involved in services for children (birth to 5 years) with, or at risk for, developmental delays. The meeting was designed to highlight successful collaborative…