This evaluation study provides descriptive information about the implementation and outcomes of the 21st Century Community Learning Centers (CCLC) program in West Virginia, from September 2013 through May 2014. The report draws on information from online surveys of directors of 27 CCLC programs and from school teachers for 2,117 of the 11,432…

This paper presents a review of the family services that were offered by a sample of 121 English Sure Start Children's Centres in 2011 and 2012. Children's Centres are community based facilities that aim to improve outcomes for at-risk families and children through the delivery of a range of services largely aimed at families with young children.…

Passage of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 ushered in a new era of accountability for educational institutions and social programs in the United States. Federal funding became tied to demonstrated results on the basis of scientifically based research. In this paper we recount the science-to-policy translation process for one of the…

This article presents evidence from a national evaluation of the effects of 21st Century Community Learning Center after-school programs. The study was conducted in 12 school districts and 26 after-school centers, at which 2,308 elementary school students who were interested in attending a center were randomly assigned either to the treatment or…

To evaluate the functioning of a senior citizens' center, data were collected on six variables: (1) historical population shifts; (2) attendance and membership statistics; (3) goal attainment; (4) community outreach attempts; (5) neighborhood resources; and (6) general factors affecting attendance. Comparisons revealed a pattern of decreasing…

This publication summarizes reports from a workshop to share the experience of UNESCO's literacy program and to learn about other effective experiences in literacy available in the region. The opening of the workshop and election of officers is reported. Summaries of the following reports are given: (1) the role of learning centers to achieve…

This publication contains materials from a workshop organized to help its participants understand and apply the concept of learning centers. Chapter 1 is an introduction. Chapter 2 consists of two presentations: "Literacy and Continuing Education for Improvement of Quality of Life in Asia and the Pacific" and an explanation of the World…

The New Approach Method (NAM) is an innovative reading program relying heavily on a phonics approach. The mode of presentation is a cassette tape recorder, which the child is taught to operate at the beginning of the program. The NAM lessons were administered to children at four NAM mini centers; a group of parents administered the NAM lessons to…

The evolution and implementation of a collaborative effort between an elementary school bilingual science education project (Process in Science Methods, or PRISM) of The Network, Inc., and a study of the educational effectiveness of community arts centers (Project Co-Arts) are described. With PRISM's focus on science and Co-Arts' concentration on…

The Beacons Initiative aimed to transform eight public schools (five middle schools and three high schools) into youth and family centers in low-income neighborhoods in San Francisco, California. Using a coalition of local partners and funding from public agencies and foundations, the centers served 7,500 youth and adults between July 1, 1999, and…