This essay focuses on the politics of public education for the disadvantaged. Specifically, an attempt is made to describe the conditions under which the disadvantaged have sought to change the public schools by adopting one of two political strategies--integration or community control. The discussion of the first strategy, integration, includes…

A cooperative presentation of the University of Missouri, St. Louis, Extension Division and the Missouri Department of Community Affairs, this project was designed as a reference for discussion groups of all types, to give perspective and direction in the search for an understanding of the complex situations which contribute to the crisis in…

This is a comprehensive guide for a bilingual community liaison with educational institutions. Questions discussed include the reasons for, the role of, and recommended steps for, a community liaison. A calendar of events is provided by the Bay Area Bilingual Education League and the Bilingual Alternatives for Secondary Teachers and Aides, two…

The Fresno County Refugee Health Volunteer Project enables individuals, families, and community groups to meet their health care needs. In spite of various problems, valuable progress has been made since 1984. The program is a model approach to health care which builds on the strength and skills of the community. (VM)

In 1979, the Learning Enrichment Foundation was established with assistance from the York Board of Education, as a not-for-profit community development corporation devoted to the promotion of multicultural arts enrichment, the provision of child care services, and mounting employment-training schemes, particularly for youth. The group's…

Details the history of Big Laurel, West Virginia from 1918-1941, 1941-1965, and 1965-1983, noting the effects on education of events in all three periods. Describes the opening, closing, consolidation, and reopening of community schools, and the construction, development, philosophy, and curriculum of the new Big Laurel School. (SB)

Located along the U.S. Mexico border, colonias are unincorporated areas with no building codes, city taxes, or infrastructure. Most colonia residents live in poverty. Involving rural colonia residents from Hildago County, Texas, in a concerted effort to solve their problems became a central focus for a task force of educational and social…

This module, which may be used as the basis for a workshop or as a special topic unit in adult basic education or English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) courses, discusses how and why to get involved in political and community life in the United States. Topics covered include the following: local political involvement, writing letters, reading the…

Despite strong agreement on the importance of parent involvement, most schools, districts, and states still need help in developing comprehensive programs of school, family, and community partnerships. This revised handbook translates lessons learned over 20 years of research and fieldwork into practical solutions for program development. The book…

In April, 1919, at the request of the Board of Education of Memphis, Tennessee, the United States Commissioner of Education submitted the conditions on which the Bureau of Education would make a survey of the public school system of that city. This study of the Memphis schools is intended to be a study of policies and practices; not of persons.…

The superintendent of central Iowa's CAL Community School District describes how his small district maintains quality community-based education despite financial problems and federal/state neglect of rural schools. He notes that Iowa citizens have established a rural education lobbying group. Part of a theme issue on rural education. (SJL)

Under St. Louis County's new desegregation plan: (1) the heaviest burden was placed upon Black students and on the weaker original districts; (2) popular action regarding desegregation was discouraged; (3) federal agencies did not monitor the district's conduct; and (4) the court withdrew from the district, producing conflict between school…

Twelve older Aboriginal women in a Canadian city were trained to be co-researchers as part of a participatory health assessment and health promotion project involving 40 such women. Lessons were learned about project ownership, Native perceptions of research, use of traditions, participants' capacity to engage in research and analysis, conflict…

Five decades of international assistance for economic and educational development failed because of top-down management and the questionable premise that defined development problems, interventions, and human factors solely in economic terms. In contrast, the Inter-American Foundation (IAF) supported communities' capacity to formulate their…

Points out weaknesses in Salvadoran government policies, which seek to reform public education and build human capital in the interests of long-term economic development but fail to address extreme poverty and social inequality. Suggests that support for existing grass-roots economic and educational projects would help the poor and thereby…