The New York State Council on Children and Families is charged with acting as a neutral body to coordinate the 13 health, education, and human services agencies within the state to promote children and families' well-being. The Council uses the Touchstone accountability framework to facilitate the development of state and local service systems…

Two papers summarize a symposium on special education services and interagency systems of care for children and adolescents with severe emotional disturbance (SED) in California. The first paper, "Opening the Floodgates? The Influence of a System of Care on Referrals to Special Education" (Iris Zanglis, Michael J. Furlong, Michelle Wood,…

This final report describes accomplishments and activities of a four-year federally funded project to provide technical assistance to Colorado children and youth with deafblindness. Accomplishments are detailed for each of the following six project goals: (1) identification of children with deafblindness; (2) development and maintenance of…

This paper presents baseline data on students (mean age 10 years) with severe emotional disturbances at four public schools, two in Kentucky and two in Vermont, who will be followed in an evaluation of the application of a coordinated, community-based system of care operating in both states. Data are summarized concerning the service systems…

Using techniques that combine community health services with a learning situation, Boston area medical students interviewed people within a community to determine whether existing medical facilities meet or fail to meet their health needs. (LP)

Inter-agency cooperation, community college support, a successful career education component--you'll find all three in this brief history of two high school pilot programs. (Editor)

Describes a project conducted by Mount Hood Community College (Oregon) with Comprehensive Employment and Training Act funding to survey local labor market needs and to train unemployed persons in research techniques. Emphasizes the coordination of state and local agencies in project planning and looks at the applications of the findings in career…

Discusses the growing role of state agencies in the higher education accreditation process and examines implications for regional voluntary accrediting agencies. Assesses the strengths and weaknesses of both kinds of accrediting bodies and urges that they engage in cooperative activities to insure both educational quality and institutional…

Argues that community colleges and community mental health agencies have complementary roles to play in providing individuals with positive educational experiences that can be positive outlets for growth. Cites examples of courses to foster preventive mental health. (AYC)

Describes the Gateway Clubs, which work with local authorities to provide the mentally handicapped with opportunities for the enjoyment of leisure and recreation facilities. Makes recommendations for further developing voluntary and statutory authorities' collaboration, raising the general level of provision and leadership, and allocating…

Explains five functions a school can serve in a child abuse and child neglect cases. Notes other sources of help for abused children not yet of school age, such as play groups, family shelters, and crisis nurseries. Explains the flaws in various past methods of treating child abuse. (SB)

The belief that strong initiatives by the federal government are essential to achieving liberal social welfare programs is not supported by the record. What matters may not be which level of government administers the programs, but instead the dynamism engendered by changing relationships among state, local, and federal governments. (Author)

This paper urges increased educator and community agency collaboration in preventing failure among students with special needs, including students with disabilities. A chart compares networking, coordination, cooperation, and collaboration and distinguishes among them in terms of types of interaction, examples, impact on students, and impact on…

Questionnaire and interview results from 24 teachers of preschool children enrolled in both an early childhood special education program and another early childhood program, such as day care, indicated recognition of the need for staff communication across programs but great variation in the actual intensity and nature of such communication in…

This paper describes a collaborative project of several professional dental organizations to systematically respond to the Institute of Medicine's 1995 report concerning the present status and future needs of dental education. It describes the project's goals, objectives, guiding principles, and general findings. It identifies five action areas…