Restructuring of small school districts calls for power changes, including relationships: (1) between the community and the school; (2) among teachers, administrators, and students in the school; and (3) between teachers and students in the classroom. A trip to 25 small town school districts in 21 states revealed few instances of democracy, and…

Informal adult learning opportunities in Wyoming at the turn of the century were offered through popular lectures, newspaper articles, a traveling library, and the University of Wyoming's libraries and museums. Laramie City, one of the earliest towns to be established in Wyoming Territory, was home to a large concentration of formally educated…

The Teachers Network created The Teachers Voice Initiative to bring teachers together and empower them to create their vision of the future of education. This book presents the perspectives of participating teachers, who report on their experiences as agents of change and designers of curriculum. Papers include: "Teacher Leadership for Creating…

A study was conducted to establish a baseline profile of business and education linkage activities in Lake County, Illinois. Data were collected through a survey questionnaire sent to 242 public and private K-12 schools in Lake County. Two rounds of mailings resulted in the return of 109 usable forms, or 45 percent of the population. Telephone…

In rural Oregon, the one-school, 240-student K-12 Perrydale school district faces the possibility of consolidation with another school district. Oregon's Ballot Measure 5, passed in 1991, reduced property taxes to equally low levels around the state, drying up much of the locally raised money that is the lifeblood of school districts. In addition…

In March 1994, representatives of rural Delaware school districts and community agencies met to develop information, insights, and plans that would lead to better services for all children, youth, and adults in their communities. The first part of this report summarizes the major ideas generated by small-group working sessions, and discusses the…

This resource book was compiled for the United States Department of Education's Goals 2000 Orientation Conference. Sections present information about the numerous components of successful comprehensive reforms based on high standards, such as the National Education Goals, systemic education reform, standards, student assessment, professional…

Educational reform efforts toward school restructuring are examined for their impact on the education of gifted and talented students. Considered first are implications of societal changes including changing demographics (e.g., increasing student diversity), changes in family structure and in interactions between school and family, and changes in…

Business-school cooperatives are a potential solution to the need of students and educators to learn more about business, its functions in U.S. society, and the need of businesses to have a future workforce ready to face the challenges of an increasingly more complicated and highly technical work atmosphere. Such cooperatives, which are an…

In efforts to make parents feel more welcome at school and to increase their involvement, a number of schools are creating parent centers--providing parents with a room of their own in the school. Part I of this report examines the role of parent centers in strengthening family-school relationships through case studies of four parent centers in…

This book draws upon the experience of adult and community educators and youth and community workers to explore the nature and practice of local education. Chapter 1 examines the nature of local education and argues the benefits of setting aside "community education" in favor of "local education." In chapter 2, the local educator's role is…

This guide is designed as a tool to help members of the education sector involve community members in discussions about their local schools and learn how to become involved in the process of improving education in their community. The first half of the guide presents basic material for conducting a four- to seven-session discussion program based…

In many school districts, student services and instructional programs designed to address youth risk behaviors have tended to operate in isolation due to their being organized around categorical funding and professional disciplines. The framework outlined here is a multistrategy approach which seeks to organize schools' efforts to address the…

The Donald D. Zell Urban Resource Center (URC) represents Florida Community College at Jacksonville's (FCCJ) commitment to a quality workforce for Northeast Florida. Through the use of state-of-the-art technology and progressive instructional methods, the Center is helping FCCJ students expand their potential and their value in the workplace. The…

This document contains findings of a survey that examined the opinions of Georgia citizens on their state's public education system. Data collection, based on The Harwood Group Policy Dialogues approach to public issues research, included: (1) discussions with four focus groups of approximately 12 participants each; (2) a statewide telephone…