School-community partnership programs can help teachers reach children in the crucial years from birth to 4, thereby preventing reading difficulties and raising future test scores. Many organizations help families in starting their children on the road to lifetime reading by distributing free books and pamphlets on reading aloud to children. (SM)

Profiles "Civil Law Mini-Trials," an instructional activity developed by P.A.T.C.H. (Participatory Awareness Through Community Help). The Mini-Trials allow students to participate in mock civil cases including preparation, presentation of arguments, debriefing afterwards, and a discussion of the real case verdict. Discusses other P.A.T.C.H.…

The Marie-Victorin school board, in cooperation with 11 community organizations in Longueuil, Quebec, launched "De A a Z, On s'aide!," a project designed to encourage an interest in reading and writing in families with children 0-4 years old and break the recurrent cycle of illiteracy that plagues poor neighborhoods. (TD)

Describes a project to integrate technology into K-12 schools in Trumbull County, Ohio that included business, industry, government, and education members who were interested in creating a community-based information network so that students would develop technological skills needed in the workforce. Discusses funding, technology training, and…

Describes service-learning programs developed in three Catholic schools in three states. States that all schools are recent recipients of the National Service-Learning Leader School award, and that all have implemented an integrated approach to service-learning in school curricula and culture. Contains a list of service-learning resources. (NB)

Alarming numbers of students, particularly minority students, are being suspended and expelled from our nation's schools. The surface issue is discipline; however, the underlying issues are literacy and barriers to academic success. To address these issues, a large urban district opened a new school for students who were not succeeding in…

This article describes two art-based service-learning experiences that can serve as models for an authentic community-university partnership by challenging college students' sense of place through an examination of "others'" places. College students face displacement in adjusting to a new location and a new direction in life, while youth…

The authors used qualitative methods to examine a high school summer arts program in the Midwest, and researched how the program promotes the creative and aesthetic development of students and teachers, as well as an appreciation for cultural and environmental diversity and conservation. We argue the program provides a space, both physical and…

S. Redding noted the many challenges facing research and researchers in family-school-community involvement, and he presented a call to "rally the troops" to respond to a series of concerns. The issue of control over defining the role of schools should be a shared enterprise among the family, the school, and the community, with the individual…

Community-academic partnership research is a fairly new genre of community-based participatory research. It has arisen in part, from recognition of the potential role of alliances in the development and translation of applied knowledge and the elimination of health disparities. This paper reports on the learning process of academic and community…

Agency-school collaborations are examined from the point of view of the agency. The data for the analysis were gathered through interviews with staff people from six different community-based organizations in California, all of whom have experience working with schools and youth volunteers. The study found that there often are culture clashes…

This report describes the methods used to plan, organize, and teach an integrated thematic unit in the Spring of 1994 at Fairmont Junior High School in Boise, Idaho. The unit was planned collaboratively with assistance from preservice teachers and their professors at Boise State University, the principal and teachers at the junior high school, and…

This paper presents findings of a study that investigated the relationship between schools and communities. Each of the 10 schools under study served predominantly low-socioeconomic Mexican-American students. Data were derived from interviews and observations conducted at 8 of the 10 schools. Findings show that the schools' relationships with…

The United States Congress enacted the Educational Partnerships Act in 1988. The Educational Partnerships Program (EPP) stimulated the creation of educational partnerships to demonstrate their contribution to educational reform. The Office of Educational Research (OERI) provided funds to 30 educational partnerships. This document contains five…

Based on the idea that community colleges have a critical role in enhancing civic literacy through community-based programming and service learning, this volume provides descriptions of theoretical frameworks and practical models for incorporating community renewal into the college mission. The following articles are provided: (1) "Service…