Jean Kirshner holds a Ph.D. in Education and Human Resource Development from Colorado State University and specializes in literacy and teacher education. Jean started her career as the Early Childhood Director at Saint Ignatius Grammar School, Chicago in 1988. After two years she joined the Child Opportunity Program in Denver as a Head Start…

This article addresses the controversy surrounding the Safe Schools Coalition Australia. Certain politicians and media commentators have accused the initiative of harming the students it ostensibly aims to benefit. Those accusations have, in turn, been labelled 'homophobic' by supporters of the Coalition. This article suggests that the term…

In this dialogue with Monica Ridgeway and Randy Yerrick's "Whose banner are we waving?: Exploring STEM partnerships for marginalized urban youth," I engage the critical race theory (CRT) tenet of interest convergence. I first expand Derrick Bell's (1980) initial statement of interest convergence with subsequent scholarly work in this…

When Principal Natasha Moore saw the application for Community School funding from Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) during her first year as principal at REACH Academy, she jumped on the opportunity to apply. East Oakland's REACH Academy serves a student body of just under 400, and is co-located with Cox Academy, a charter school.…

Located in East Oakland, Bridges Academy serves nearly 430 students, the majority of whom are Spanish speakers. Students who are considered socio-economically disadvantaged comprise 98% of the population and English Learners make up 83%. The school also hosts one of Oakland Unified School District's (OUSD) bilingual programs. In 2016, Bridges…

Jacques Bwira arrived in Uganda in 2000, having fled the violent conflict in his native country, the Democratic Republic of Congo. Though he had trained and worked as a teacher in Congo, he feared that speaking only French would prevent him from making a living in his new home. The police officer who interrogated Jacques on arrival in the capital…

"Udbhas," which means "expression," is a non-profit organization founded in 1988 to spread literacy and promote post-literacy education among the underprivileged children in the slums of Calcutta, India. This paper describes the creation, work, and benefits to children of Udbhas. The paper notes that most of the organization's…

After listing the aims and objectives of the Institute for Socially Disadvantaged Groups' Educational Improvement (ISDGEI), in Kolhapur, India, this collection of seven articles discusses prospects, problems, and successes of providing universal elementary education to the children of India. Articles: (1) discuss quantitative and qualitative…

A new bill has been introduced in Congress by Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA) and Representative Dale Kildee (D-MI) that would make full-day early childhood education widely available to preschool students. The bill, labeled "Smart Start" (S. 2270) is intended to help economically disadvantaged preschool students, whose numbers have…

This volume offers the analysis and suggestions for reform of leading educational experts on the topic of education in the inner cities. An introduction provides an overview of the problems of American education and a proposed solution: educational choice. The 12 chapters are as follows: (1) "The Public School Monopoly: America's Berlin…

This article features an interview of Duncan Campbell. He was raised in an impoverished urban environment and went on to become a lawyer and successful Portland, Oregon, businessman. He founded Friends of the Children, a faith-based program, to provide permanent paid mentors for the most disadvantaged children in a community. Unlike more casual…

The Youth Employment and Demonstration Projects Act of 1977 (YEDPA) authorized a range of research, evaluation, and demonstration activities to increase understanding of the employment problems of youth and to help determine the most effective policies and programs to address these problems. A major knowledge development objective under YEDPA was…

The major concern of the educational system in Israel today is how to advance students who come from low socioeconomic backgrounds and from a cultural background which is different from that of the privileged sectors of the population. In general, the problem of educationally disadvantaged students is related to the problem of social gaps. These…

This paper discusses parent participation in education from three perspectives: current research and theoretical positions; a brief historical review of parent involvement and its limitations; and the comprehensive approach used by the School Development Program. The first section reviews past publications that focus on the importance of…

The Upward Bound Project for low income youth in Florida emphasizes humanistic education rather than education based on the capitalistic model of production, consumption, and competition. The project, which can serve as a model for education in developing countries, focuses on creating self-concepts and values to counteract those of an acquisitive…