As mandated by Illinois Public Act 84-1291, this report identifies the service needs of persons with autism, recommends service models, and offers a plan of action to ensure delivery of appropriate services within resources available. Three primary themes are emphasized: a need for intervention at the earliest point in time for persons with…

Findings are presented from a project which aimed to estimate the prevalence of developmental disabilities among Navajo children, aged 0-5 years, living in the Navajo Nation; determine what services they and their families require; and recommend policy and practice to assure that needed services are received. Section I provides a description of…

Designed to provide basic information on joint planning of library services for jail populations by correctional and library personnel and inmates, this curriculum guide covers 10 topics: (1) a rationale for library services in jails; (2) the characteristics and role of the jail librarian; (3) the first steps in planning library services; (4)…

The internal structure and correlates of the South Carolina State Department of Education's Needs Assessment Instruments (NAIs) for teachers, parents, and students were examined for 61, 61, and 36 schools, respectively. The NAIs are questionnaires that assess six indicators of school effectiveness: (1) instructional leadership of the principal;…

A study identified the educational needs, problems, and aspirations of older adults enrolled in traditional degree programs on community college campuses. It focused exclusively on male and female community college students, aged 55 and above, who are enrolled in degree programs of study, to discover their opinions concerning the institutions'…

The needs assessment reported in this document was undertaken to identify the skills and knowledge needed in the maintenance department of Standard Steel of Burnham, Pennsylvania, so that curriculum could be developed to: (1) train most department employees for most tasks across crafts; and thereby (2) increase productivity by decreasing the time…

This digest begins with a brief discussion of the current status of the relatively recent phenomenon of online searching in schools. The advantages and disadvantages of online access in this context are then outlined, and some suggestions are offered for school library media specialists who wish to initiate online information retrieval for their…

A study examined the characteristics and features of vocational, technical, and adult education (VTAE) programs that encourage and/or inhibit entrepreneurship competencies. The study population included random samples of 50 students drawn from each of Wisconsin's VTAE districts, 30 occupational instructors from each district, and 30 graduates of…

A project identified training competencies performed by human resource specialists and determined competencies that needed further professional development. It used this information to assess the adequacy of the training programs of the University of Tennessee's Department of Technological and Adult Education and to determine the feasibility of…

This report of the results of the 1987 survey of higher education libraries in Oklahoma begins by briefly describing the development and refinement of the annual survey instrument used to help determine the needs of these libraries. The data tables and analyses are then presented by type of institution, i.e., 2-year colleges, 4-year colleges, and…

This manual is designed to provide Peace Corps staff with materials that can be used in the inservice training of volunteers. It addresses areas outside the realm of the volunteer's technical job assignment, areas that are directly related to a volunteer's effectiveness on the job. The manual assumes that inservice training will take place 6-12…

Because of concerns about its ability to meet the shifting demands resulting from changes in today's society, the Virginia Extension Homemakers Council (VEHC) undertook a systematic program to change its organizational structure. In 1983, representatives of the VEHC and the Virginia Cooperative Extension Service (VCES) met to identify the causes…

As a result of declining enrollments and the associated need for budget reductions, many school districts are confronting the issue of school closure. This guidebook presents an alternative to closing schools, namely, the option of transforming them into community centers and addresses the issues involved in cooperative planning with the community…

The report describes the development and implementation of a statewide (Vermont) service delivery system which employed and trained parents of children with severe handicaps to: (1) work with educators to facilitate their involvement with families, and (2) provide information and support services which addressed individual family needs. The family…

This paper provides a brief review of the issues regarding families in early intervention programs for handicapped children and proposes the assessment of family needs as a first step in designing family-focused interventions. While traditional approaches to early intervention tend to be exclusively child-focused, professionals are encouraged to…