Poverty and unemployment aren't spread evenly across cities or regions, but rather are concentrated in disinvested urban neighborhoods and rural communities around the country. These communities are home to the nation's most vulnerable children and families. Despite some signs of improvement in economic conditions for families in the United…

In May 2007, leaders from national organizations and local communities gathered to renew their commitment to deepen their organizations' dedication to community schools. They developed a strategic plan, described herein, that will achieve the goals of sustaining and strengthening existing school initiatives; grow new community schools initiatives;…

Mobilization of citizen participation in grassroots organizations can be adversely affected when grassroots leaders perceive a lack of support. Periodic organizational diagnosis can lead to more equitable division of responsibilities and recruitment of more leaders and skilled participants. (SK)

Discusses an effort by students, parents, alumni, and alumni parents to help clean and paint Bishop Fenwick High School, in Massachusetts, as a way to "give something back" to the school; the event has been a springboard for other community service events, such as a landscaping day at the school. (AJL)

This booklet is written from the perspective that small towns can survive in changing times with the right leadership. It is intended for use by educators involved with community development or by extension educators. The attitudes and behaviors of leaders are key factors that will help communities cope with change. No longer will a town survive…

Operation Rescue is a teacher-initiated and -managed early intervention program to identify and help potential dropouts. The program relies upon establishing one-to-one friendships between at-risk children and volunteers. Cooperation with community groups promotes the goal of "local groups solving local problems." Operation Rescue…

Ways in which community "visioning" can be used to generate support and action for community education are described in this paper. Six steps in the community visioning process are discussed: (1) preparing; (2) conducting a workshop; (3) obtaining community feedback; (4) action planning; (5) recruiting, implementing, and following up; and (6)…

Community preparation for school desegregation is essential for a peaceful, orderly process and improved educational quality. Examples are given of three large cities that faced problems with different attitudes and means of solving these problems. (JD)

Depicts Chaucer's Canterbury Pilgrims as parallels with types now in a representative university system. Speech delivered at the Association of Departments of English (ADE) Seminar, San Fernando Valley State College, Los Angeles, California, June 29-July 3, 1970. (DS)

Discusses how a professional opinion poll can be used in public libraries to persuade politicians to support a more favorable allocation of resources. Provides a specific example and notes the importance of constant vigilance, informal regional pollsters, and using polls not sponsored by the library (AEF)

The Goals 2000: Educate America Act calls for partnerships across local, state, and federal levels. This document offers suggestions for community organization to achieve the national education goals. The first section includes information on forming a steering committee, creating task forces, avoiding turf battles and finger pointing, defining…

This paper reports the effects of Hurricane Hugo on mental health workers and indigenous community members. The response and perceptions of mental health staff from the South Carolina Department of Mental Health (Go Teams) from areas unaffected by the hurricane were compared and contrasted with those of a subsequent Hugo Outreach Support Team…