Woodland management is critical for ensuring forests are sustainably managed, yet few forest landowners have management plans and are often unsure of where to turn for advice. In New York State, the Master Forest Owner (MFO) Volunteer program provides free support from trained volunteers, however participation in the program has declined since…

Most youth development programs strive to promote thriving, but scientific inquiry into "how" they achieve this aim is rare and often complicated by nuanced program structures and delivery. Across two studies, we explored how one thriving indicator, having a sense of purpose in life, may be cultivated by a statewide 4-H program. In Study…

Introduction: Guiding Eyes for the Blind (GEB) breeds, raises, and trains dogs to serve as guides for people with visual impairments (i.e., those who are blind or have low vision). Their puppy raising program enlists volunteers to foster puppies for a year or more, providing socialization, basic skills training, and comfort, so they will grow into…

Parent engagement is typically understood as parent attendance at school functions or volunteering; however, these spaces are often defined by the behavioral norms of White middle-class parents. Using social class, moral capital, and Critical Whiteness Studies as theoretical frameworks, this article qualitatively examines the implementation of a…

Implementing a standardized interpretive training and mentoring program across multiple departments has helped created a shared language that staff and volunteers use to collaborate and evaluate interpretive programs and products. This has led to more efficient and effective training and measurable improvements in the quality of the visitor's…

The Coalition for Community Schools (Coalition), as an alliance of national, state and local partners that advocate for community schools, wanted to provide support and a space for community school leaders to share their challenges and successes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Beginning March 17, 2020 through the present, the Coalition conducted…

This paper examines the feasibility of developing a new Master Volunteer training program to help communities adapt to and mitigate the impacts of climate change. Traditional models of volunteer training programs, such as the Cooperative Extension Master Volunteer peer-to-peer learning model, are based in part on Diffusion Theory. The existing…

The purpose of this study was to investigate how the school-parent relationship (volunteering, outreach, and communicating) in schools differs among the poverty level of students. One hundred eighty-nine middle school parents answered a parental involvement survey. Comparisons were made between the poverty level of students (free and reduced…

Older adults face many challenges in the workplace, one being the advancement of technologies both in hardware and software development. The purpose of the study was to understand the learned experiences of older adults integrating advanced technologies into their critical decision-making work experience because of training. Literature claimed a…

Many colleges and universities are starting to work more strategically to educate current students about what is waiting for them in their alumni years after graduation. The idea is to teach students and get them excited that the experience they have with their university is one that will last a lifetime. However and in spite of the success of…

The ability to navigate the vast ocean of available information and perform reference services in digital environments is an essential component of the job for most of today's reference librarians, especially those working in academic libraries. Reference librarians face a challenge: they must be highly skilled at searching for, locating, and…

The civic mission of American colleges and universities has received renewed attention over the last decade. From the "engaged campus" designation now offered by the Carnegie Endowment for the Advancement of Teaching to the growth of Campus Compact (from 782 institutional members in 2000 to 1150 in 2012) to major institutional…

This article presents an interview with Mindy Duitz, president of Learning Leaders, an organization that supports teachers with volunteers in New York City's public schools so they could have more time. Among other things, Duitz discusses the history of Learning Leaders, its services, recruitment of volunteers, and communications strategies for…

This article features several community college alumni who share how community colleges contributed to their success later in their lives and how they are inspired to give back. These outstanding alumni stress the importance of community and public service. They include: (1) Dr. Richard Carmona, U.S. Surgeon General from 2002 to 2006; (2) Colonel…

This report complements a national survey of outdoor arts festivals (see "Live from Your Neighborhood: A National Study of Outdoor Arts Festivals, Volume One: Summary Report") by focusing on seven case study festivals: Houston International Festival; Piccolo Spoleto; Lowell Folk Festival; Santa Fe Indian Market; Chicago Jazz Festival;…