Students attending a Minnesota school in a middle-class neighborhood are finding that cooperation, conflict resolution, and civic values are creating a safe haven from the stresses of family and neighborhood life. Students have two innovative programs (Continuous Progress and Discovery) to choose from. Highlands Elementary nurtures its students…

The studies and policies of the U.S. Children's Bureau in the era of Progressive education benefited many children, but its emphasis on the middle-class family ideals and relative disinterest in poverty issues left a legacy with policy implications in today's climate of welfare reform. (SLD)