This document presents a speech delivered by Chancellor Bill Goertz at the meeting of the State Board of Higher Education last November 19, 2009. In his speech, Chancellor Goertz reports that: (1) according to a Delta Cost Project report, North Dakota ranked among the top five states in regard to market-based productivity; (2) the Midwest Higher…

Recognizing that a solid base of community support was essential if the district was to effectively confront the influences of declining enrollment, the Tulsa public schools organized a group of unbiased but interested community members to study and make recommendations regarding the problem, particularly the utilization of school facilities. A…

The author is presently engaged in an action research experiment in two school districts in the Southeastern United States that is focusing on the role of two variables in determining the effectiveness of community advisory councils. The two variables are the objectives the advisory councils are supposed to achieve and the factors, some…

This paper describes the organization and function of the Instructional Improvement Committee (IIC) system developed by the Jefferson County (Alabama) School System. Each school in the system has its own IIC, chaired by the school principal; the principal arranges for the election of at least one representative each from the various groups within…

A current project of the Southeastern Public Education Program (SEPEP) of the American Friends Service Committee is strengthening the implementation of parental involvement requirements of Title I of the 1965 Elementary and Secondary Education Act. Toward this end, SEPEP has provided technical assistance to parent advisory council members in…

In January 1981 the Community Advisory Council of the North Allegheny School District in Pennsylvania undertook a program called Planning for Educational Awareness through Community Examination (PEACE). This program involved a poll of the community to determine the major issues facing schools in the eighties and public opinion about how these…

Indian education programs in Canadian Northwest Territories (NWT) are based on the philosophy of communication, local involvement, relevancy. To implement these, the NWT Education Department has developed made-in-the-NWT curriculum handbooks -- A Curriculum Guide for K-6 and Learning in the Middle Years. In the NWT's 62 schools, there are over 100…

Involving middle school students in decision making is an important way to make them feel that they are part of the educational process in their school, that they are part of the "school team." A key way to involve students is through the creation of a Student Advisory Board (SAB), such as the one in place at Schmucker Middle School in…

A large-scale educational program, involving 30 settlements and neighborhoods that had been defined as suffering from deprivation, this project included a variety of reinforcement and enrichment programs. Information for a case study of the program was collected through interviews. Findings indicated that the guiding principles of the program…

This paper is a partial report on a three-year field experiment in participatory educational planning in a suburban school district. It is shown that teachers, administrators, parents, and students, working voluntarily with technical support as a "collateral organization" within a district, can substantially broaden the scope of…

In 1985, the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) Childcare Services of Singapore started an experimental project designed to develop an alternative model of child care. The resulting project, the Community Childcare Center (CCC), differs from regular child care centers in that it: (1) is cheaper; (2) involves considerable community…

In response to problems with the cyclical model of program review and reduced state and county funding, Burlington County College (BCC), in New Jersey, implemented a comprehensive analysis process to holistically assess program performance and resource allocation. First, program review goals were established and the major programs/services at BCC…

To obtain practical experience, a research methods class at the University of Colorado (Colorado Springs) undertook a special project to help a nearby county (Park County), assess its planning needs. The county was chosen for its characteristics as a rapidly growing rural area faced with the problems created by mounting population pressure on…

The ways in which a sample of faculty members from the University of Illinois at Chicago create curricula is described and compared with methods selected from the curriculum development literature. An overview is presented of the university's Curriculum Development Grants (CDG) Committee program, its historical development, and several domains of…

The Illinois Network of Exemplary Occupational Education Programs for Handicapped and Disadvantaged Students developed demonstration programs for the handicapped at six high schools, two vocational centers, and one community college. The Network was designed to demonstrate those practices which resulted in the provision of effective services to…