This report examines how state welfare-to-work programs have affected young children since the 1996 welfare reform act, which moved millions of women into low-wage jobs. Researchers followed a sample of 948 mothers and young children for 2-4 years after the women entered new welfare programs in California, Connecticut, and Florida. After…

This paper examines rural conditions from three perspectives: education, demographics, and economics from national, state and regional data sources; Rural Attitude Survey data from students at Western Carolina University in the Appalachian mountain region; and concerns of teachers about education in the region derived from focus group discussions.…

The relationships among community characteristics and community well-being were examined for all 366 rural California communities with a population of 1,000-2,000. High proportions of Latinos and new immigrants in a community population were positively related to unemployment, percent children, and employment in agriculture, and negatively related…

A study of the impact of independent colleges and universities on Connecticut's economy, workforce, quality of life, and future found a state economy in the 1990s very different from that of the past, one requiring increased educational attainment among the citizenry. Both higher high school graduation rates and increased college attendance and…

A committee at Luther College (Iowa) was appointed to explore the 3-year option for a bachelors degree with regard to curriculum, finances, admissions, and student life. The committee, composed of administrators and faculty from Luther, examined 3-year programs that operate now or are being discussed at several other colleges. They found that…

To gain a perspective on rural America's future, seven roundtables consisting of seven rural stakeholder groups were convened. Four groups of challenges facing rural areas emerged. The rural business environment was considered the source of greatest challenge. Agriculture concerns included low profits and access to world markets. The effects of…

This text includes all of the plenary presentations from the 3rd European Conference of Deafblind International's Acquired Deafblindness Network. This international conference was the first to focus specifically on older people with dual sensory impairment. Presentations addressed the awareness of the needs of older people with deafblind or dual…

The working poor are typically defined by researchers as individuals who work at least part of the year and earn less than a given percentage of the federal poverty level. This definition tends to understate the problem. In 1997, 15.8 million employed parents had incomes below 200 percent of the federal poverty level. The federal Earned Income Tax…

The various forms of oppression in urban daily life include oppression in living conditions, production, consumption, and use of space, and ideological oppression. Responding to this oppression is a "subversive" culture. Based on individual and group awareness of creative potential, it opposes oppression and is the source of change. (CS)

Current emphasis on technology and neglect of the areas of human understanding and development may produce children who are unable to sustain human relationships and interaction and will turn to machines for gratification. Society faces the challenge of altering these trends by developing human resources in order to have technology serve human…

The assumption that Mexican emigration to the United States provides benefits to Mexico in the form of jobs for unemployed Mexicans and wage remittances has kept Mexican officials from discouraging illegal emigration. In fact, emigration drains the Mexican economy and should be a cause for Mexican government concern. (Author/MJL)

Sources of job satisfaction and job related stress among public school physical educators are examined. Recommended techniques are offered for physical education administrators to reduce their employees' job-related stress and to improve the quality of worklife. (JN)

The farmers' training and functional literacy program is based on the idea that there is a distinct correlation between physical and human ingredients in agriculture, between agricultural inputs and the upgrading of human resources. The program provides an integrated approach to a comprehensive rural development program and growth in agriculture.…

In the future, computers will be needed to sift through the vast proliferation of available information. Among new developments in computer technology are the videodisc microcomputers and holography. Predictions for future developments include laser libraries for the visually handicapped and Computer Assisted Dialogue. (JN)

Education and training are primarily responsible for war and peace, states the author in discussing fallacies in the concept of peace education to promote nonviolence and tolerance. Noting that school competitiveness, as well as adult hypocrisy, promotes crime and violence, he considers challenges to peace education. (MF)