Suggests four methods for implementing a successful library planning process, based on experiences at the Anaheim (California) Public Library. Highlights include maximizing the level of public input; engaging staff at all levels in all stages of the process; assessing all input critically; and proper use in decision making. (Author/LRW)

Although policymakers, courts, and advocacy groups have raised awareness of bilingual education, there is a gap between the remedial model and grassroots community views of bilingual education as enrichment. Support for bilingual education must be recontextualized as a strategy for education reform with leadership from language-minority persons.…

Investigated the social origins of black physicians from poor, rural, southern communities, examining contextual factors that helped explain their great academic and professional success as young adults. Argues that it was the community that identified and nurtured these gifted children, thus making it possible for them to attend college and…

This article describes a participatory action research (PAR) project designed to evaluate Parent to Parent programs in five states. The process of developing a shared understanding of the program and of the purpose for evaluating them, along with an on-going willingness of parents and researchers to compromise, led to creative solutions to…

Discusses an ethnographic study that followed cohorts of English-as-Second-Language learners enrolled in mainstream Canadian classrooms in kindergarten through Grade 2. Examines classroom practices that appear to offer participants access to the linguistic resources of their community and those in which participants appear to have limited access…

One Oregon community applies a set of community justice principles and philosophies that have produced tangible and successful programs to build community, reduce risk, and repair harm. Describes some of the county's community justice history and programs, including revamped victim assistance programs, victim-offender mediation, and a community…

A New Jersey school for preschool through second grade teaches tolerance and understanding by including severely disabled and nondisabled children in the same classes. A universal playground, currently being planned, will be deliberately structured to allow disabled and nondisabled children to play together. (TD)

Concerned about sudden death and injury, a small, underfunded Pennsylvania district integrated a wellness center into its middle-school physical-education program to address every student's needs and detect health problems early. Sixth-graders use heart monitors to test their endurance in varied sports activities. (MLH)

This article aims to examine determinants of social integration in the community among college students. Two-wave panel data from an undergraduate student sample (N = 310) was used to explore the effects of multiple sets of variables (personal, interpersonal, and situational) on social integration in the community. Structural equation analysis…

Community participation is central to achieving sustainable natural resource management. A prerequisite to informed participation is that community and stakeholder groups have access to different knowledge sources, are more closely attuned to the different issues and viewpoints, and are sufficiently equipped to understand and maybe resolve complex…

Current discourse around widening participation emphasises the importance of partnership and collaboration. For example, the Learning Skills Council and government policy all cite the need to adopt collaborative approaches to assist with widening participation and student progression. In 1998 the Higher Education Funding Council for England…

This chapter uses the conceptual framework of a learning organization to make a case for how a theory might enrich organizational practice in the field of higher education.

Circles of Care grantees were provided the opportunity to develop a locally relevant definition of serious emotional disturbance (SED) that would be used to define what type of emotional, behavioral, and mental disability would be required to receive services. After conducting detailed assessments of the definition in the guidance for applicants…

We examined family and religiousspiritual antecedents and correlates of current and intended civic involvement in 76 middle class African American late adolescents (M = 18.43 years) who had been followed longitudinally for 3 years. Adolescents' spirituality/religiosity and mothers' current involvement influenced the overall ratings and more…

Bound to the notion of teenage apathy is the concern that young people are increasingly disengaged from political and community issues and lacking in social capital. Voting is often regarded as the ultimate form of civic engagement, which implicitly excludes young teenagers from consideration through their status as non-voters. Teenagers'…