The author describes her experiences as linking agent in aiding four local Massachusetts schools to examine, choose, and implement innovative reading programs. A process rather than content expert, her task was to organize existing, widespread support for change within the schools and to work with both the principals and a multiconstituent…

This paper examines the development and current state of educational information resources and dissemination networks as a means of planning educational programs for ethnic minority immigrants. The national, regional and state dissemination networks are identified and discussed; the difficulties involved in the dissemination of information to…

A computerized system on faculty research interests and activities, which was developed by an academic health sciences center, is described. The objective of the information system is to better match faculty capabilities with potential funding opportunities. The case study is designed to assist other institutions by outlining the characteristics…

Research into the decisionmaking process of families faced with investigating alternatives to institutionalizing frail aged members could yield valuable information for service planners and providers. To analyze the extent to which its original service plan remained responsive to the changing needs of the frail elderly service population,…

The development of a faculty information system at Carnegie Mellon University is traced using a case study approach. Attention is focused on the process of system design by committee, the resulting relational database, and its impact on institutional research and university reporting. Technical implementation and details of the system design are…

Community mental health centers have been faced with mandates to introduce new programs or improve old ones often without the necessary information or expertise to implement such changes. Community mental health centers (N=39) were studied to identify the nature and extent of information use and factors related to information use. Experts visited…

The kind of data useful to a statewide planning agency is considered, with focus on Illinois, and attention is directed to the use of these data once generated, including resulting problems. Illinois is currently engaged in the conceptual design of a computerized management information system that will contain as a subset the State Level…

The authors discuss the information needs of developers in the early prototype phase, where the developer requires input that provides guidelines for the tryout revision cycle that cannot be satisfied by pre- and post-test data. When a develop-user relationship conducive to open communication allowed users to convey their perceptions and problems…

The Ohio Valley Community Health Information Network (OVCHIN) works to determine the efficacy of delivering health information to residents of rural southern Ohio and the urban and suburban Cincinnati area. OVCHIN is a community-based, consumer-defined demonstration grant program funded by the National Telecommunications and Information…

The role of institutional research in the creation and operation of an information center is discussed, along with the ways in which the spread of information centers within higher education is likely to influence the future development of institutional research. Forces leading to the emergence of information centers are advances in computer…

Two evaluation projects conducted for the Minnesota Agricultural Extension Service are examined from a user-focused perspective: (1) a needs assessment of large scale commercial farmers for program development by the Office of Special Programs; and (2) a review of the extension programs in Nicollet County. Each incorporated the focus group method…

Although the formal extension work in Canada has been patterned after the United States Cooperative Extension Service to a considerable degree, there are some important differences between the extension education systems in the two countries. The public, private, and voluntary sectors all play significant roles in Canada's extension and technology…

Factors related to the contextual aspects of educational administrators' information needs were studied in a statewide survey of 199 administrators of adult and community education programs. Attention was directed to: varying preferences for different information sources, the effects of different decision or program development tasks on…

This paper outlines the need for a more substantial and publicly available base of information and analysis of initial teacher education in Australia, so that the school teaching profession, school authorities, and the Commonwealth can join with teacher educators in developing optimal programs, policies, and strategy. The paper then describes a…

In 1991 Quality University organized its first Office of Institutional Planning and Research within the provost's office. This Office has focused on six major functions: (1) organization and start-up activities (developing collegial support, analyzing information resources, and developing computing resources); (2) administrative information…