Describes a cooperative program between Indiana University and The Children's Museum of Indianapolis that was designed to expose preservice elementary teacher trainees to children who were interacting with the museum's displays. Discusses some of the misconceptions that the children held about certain scientific concepts and the entertainment…

A school/community-based program was developed by Montgomery County (Maryland) Public Schools to prepare students, aged 5-21, with moderate/profound retardation for transition into adult life. Program goals included providing more community and job training and increasing opportunities for frequently occurring, quality interactions with…

Examines Project MAIN (Mobile Assistants in Nutrition), a 12-month demonstration project and the collaborative effort of an urban university, a high school, and a senior services agency, which employed students, ages 14 to 19, to research, plan, and operate a grocery delivery and escort service for elderly and disabled citizens. (BB)

An art/historic preservation program involving elementary and junior high school students working with college students is described. Each year the students interpret and document a local architectural landmark. Students are involved in a number of activities, including research, oral history interviews, title searches, role playing, and…

This document discusses how service learning has developed over the past century in its practices from involvement in volunteerism to active civic engagement. It is so beneficial to both learners and the community that many educators and government leaders believe it should be a required component in the educational career of all students. The…

This paper discusses service learning, arguing that the pedagogy of service learning offers a framework in which students can remember and apply more of what they learn than in traditional content based and faculty centered curriculum. Service learning strategies recognize that we retain 60% of what we do, 80% of what we do with guided reflection,…

The author, who is the President of Miami-Dade Community College (MDCC), Florida, argues that the fundamental purpose of MDCC is to preserve democracy. MDCCs open-door policy makes it possible for those who might otherwise be excluded from higher education to gain a college education, which then makes it possible for them to become active,…

This study, the second of 2 conducted by the Institute for Educational Leadership (IEL) on the governance of the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) program, describes the growth and development of collaborative decision-making in 4 of the initial grantee communities after 2 years of funding. IEL's first report asked the original 99…

In this issue, we explore how community partnerships to support formal learning and development matter and how they can be created and sustained. In "Research Update," we discuss the results of a new report and poll on 21st century skills that affirms that every student needs a "basics plus" education that pushes beyond core academic knowledge to…

The 11 chapters in this book describe successful innovative programs of service learning at the undergraduate level. Emphasis is on how different kinds of institutions, facing different internal and external circumstances, have made service-learning an institutional asset. The chapters are: (1) "Introduction: A New Model of Excellence" (Edward…

This report addresses university outreach efforts at Michigan State University (MSU) and sets out strategic directions for strengthening such efforts. The report focuses on three messages: (1) that faculty, staff, and students are engaged in a significant amount of outreach, although these activities may not always be so labeled; (2) that outreach…

This paper describes Project SUCCEED (School University Community Coalition for Excellence in Education). The coalition includes the University of Miami School of Education, the University of Miami College of Arts and Sciences, Miami-Dade County Public Schools, and the Miami Museum of Science. The goal is to provide a comprehensive approach to…

This document is comprised of summaries of six papers presented at a symposium on the Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative, a federal grant to school districts intended to promote health and safety in schools and communities. The Initiative was designed to confront school violence, safety, and mental health needs through the provision of a…

This paper describes an innovative interdisciplinary course offered at the University of New Orleans (Louisiana) which involved community members as full-fledged partners with students and university faculty in service-learning-by-doing teams. Each student, with the assistance of a faculty member and a community partner, identified an opportunity…

This study examines the importance of structured reflection in service-learning courses. The study consisted of interviews with 15 faculty and 72 students from three different higher education institutions; interviews were conducted between October 1998 and March 1999. Focus group interviews with faculty gathered information about course design,…