Study circles have been an inexpensive, practical method of adult education in Scandinavia since their formal introduction in Sweden in 1902. From their origins in political and union ideas, they have been developed through a network of organizations which sponsor them on all different subjects. A study circle is a group of people with a common…

The contributions made during World War II by Mexican-American women on the home front have not been recognized in their proper historical perspective. Like their Anglo counterparts, these women took up the responsibilities left by their men and worked to support the war effort. In 1944 the Mexican-American women of Tucson formed La Asociacion…

This report recommends that the House of Representatives pass the School Dropout Prevention and Basic Skills Improvement Act of 1990. The bill would amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to improve secondary school programs for basic skills improvement, dropout prevention, and dropout reentry by strengthening reporting…

This brief overview of research on Hispanic parents' cooperation in supporting their children's education focuses on the need to support parents so that they can, in turn, participate in their children's education. It suggests that local Hispanic community agencies have an important role in bringing schools and parents together. The following…

ASPIRA is a community-based Hispanic American organization dedicated to improving the economic status of Hispanic Americans by reducing the high school dropout rate. ASPIRA uses the cultural, ethnic, and linguistic affinities of the Hispanic community to work with students through local clubs. The ASPIRA intervention process is based on awareness…

Contemporary scholars researching the courts' impact on schools would profit from examining the well-funded studies conducted in the 1960s and early 1970s. This article discusses the substance of early judicial impact research and explores its relevance for today. Most 1960s impact studies dealt with United States Supreme Court decisions in three…

The Extension organization faces a new challenge to develop and maintain partnerships at the local level, bringing together people, programs, and resources. Although the Extension Service already operates under the concept of a partnership between federal, state, and local governments, the federal partner has created a vacuum in this three-way…

The agents most successful in reaching and teaching those most in need of basic skills instruction are the community-based organizations (CBOs). They come into being in response to social and economic problems faced by their constituents--disadvantaged minorities, the poor, the unemployed, and the alienated. Because of their close ties to the…

More people than ever are using coastal waters for recreation and business activities and living along the shores. This puts more pressure on natural resources and creates more conflicts between the people using the resources. This guidebook is designed to help citizens develop an understanding of how coastal management works. Four chapters in…

This handbook reviews displaced worker and community experiences to identify traumatic areas of concern and, thereby, to propose strategies for other communities should they face similar crises. Part 1 focuses on preventing a plant closing. Indications of plant closure are discussed as well as a pre-closure intervention model to reduce…

This summary, the last of a four-part study of social networks in Pontiac, Michigan, presents highlights from the three previous volumes and advocates the use of network research for understanding the dissemination process in educational innovation. Based on the conclusion that social networks provide a metaphor for understanding complex social…

Many afterschool programs operated by neighborhood or community-based organizations (CBOs) take place in students' school buildings. Navigating relationships between afterschool programs and their host public schools can be challenging for both parties. At times, tension in such relationships can throw unnecessary roadblocks on the path to…

The author uses the "lifecourse" of one model--the community partnership plan--as a lens into school reform in Philadelphia, focusing particularly on the politics of school reform and Philadelphians' responses to privatization. The aim of the article is to show that education reform is not about the orderly implementation of a particular…

The communal unit from which a great many basic human needs must be met is a fluid, family-oriented institution such as the local parish rather than a corporate institution such as the modern school. Experiments in building partnerships between these potentially complementary institutions are necessary. (Author/IRT)