An analysis of a new professional specialty--advocate planning--suggests that social movements are seen to enter a profession through the creation of new specialties or segments. By showing that the new practitioners of advocacy planning were highly, though variably, influenced by social movement organizations of the 1960's, this paper suggests…

Interviews and questionnaires were administered to a varied group of professional social change agents. A four-category typology of change agent types was developed from an inductive analysis of the data. (Author)

In its broadest terms, the learning paradigm calls for institutional change and institutional responsibility for learning outcomes. Leaders have to develop structures and processes that allow for more flexibility and creativity. Decisions have to become more data-driven. Barriers to student success have to be identified and removed. This book…

There is cause for concern about the future of public higher education. The unease is driven in part by the recent cuts in state funding of most public universities and by the harsh reality that today's strains are merely a continuation of a three-decade-long trend driven by systemic tensions in state budgets. Arguably of greater moment is the…

Frontline social services workers are the heart and soul of our nation's publicly funded human services system. Conservatively estimated at about 3 million, these workers have a tremendous impact on the life chances of vulnerable children and families. This vital role prompted Casey Foundation staff to conduct an in-depth exploration of job…

This paper examines the incompatibility between organizational structures and the efforts used to improve student learning. Following a brief introduction, it outlines why school improvement is so problematic. The essay makes the case for the incompatibility between the structure of schools and the demands for school improvement. To make this…

Leveraging Internet technologies, distance education is enjoying a renaissance of sorts. With its newfound popularity comes greater resource as well as higher expectations and great scrutiny. If distance education programs are to support their dramatic growth and outlive the hype, they must demonstrate performance results. Performance, however,…

Many evaluators are convinced that Results-based Performance Measurement (RBPM) is an effective tool to improve service delivery and cost effectiveness in both public and private sectors. Successful RBPM requires self-directed and cross-functional work teams and the supporting infrastructure to make it work. There are many misconceptions and…

For over 10 years, the accelerated schools movement has worked to implement a cohesive philosophy and process for change in over 1,000 schools in 41 states. This paper describes the characteristics of accelerated schools and details the influences that districts have on them. It demonstrates how districts influence the success or failure of…

Educational improvement efforts are doomed as long as schools are viewed as unique organizations. The concepts of coordination and collegiality are key to all organizations, especially schools. The introduction to this book discusses the charter-school movement, which judges existing school systems as inimical and intractable to achieving improved…

This final report describes activities and accomplishments of a 3-year program, the Queens College (New York) Freshman Year Initiative (FYI), which emphasizes the importance of the academic community and the role of faculty in integrating freshmen into the college community. The program has become institutionalized and currently involves 600…

This paper begins with a discussion of the characteristics and the singularity of chaotic systems, including dynamic systems theory, chaotic orbit, fractals, chaotic attractors, and characteristics of chaotic systems. The second section addresses the digital libraries (DL) concept and the appropriateness of chaotic models, including definition and…

This paper begins with a section that describes characteristics of knowledge management in libraries, including: human resource management is the core of knowledge management in libraries; the objective of knowledge management in libraries is to promote knowledge innovation; and information technology is a tool for knowledge management in…

This paper examines the effects of site-based budgeting in education. It describes and presents a school-based budgetary decision-making model that was designed originally to shift the balance of power from the central office to the building level. The model has been refined and successfully utilized in one school district for 20 years, and its…

A study examined the extent and significance of organizational learning in international development agencies (IDAs) concerning gender and education; the manner in which IDAs learn; and the factors that create obstacles to learning. Research was divided into four steps: (1) tracing the relevant academic literature on organizational change; (2)…