In the Federal Republic of Germany, as elsewhere, the recent unemployment crisis has forced politicians, economists, trade unionists, and experts to consider a number of courses of action designed to reduce working time. Included among these alternatives are the following: adopting the 35-hour work week, shortening working life through early…

This document is a transcript of a fact-finding hearing conducted to evaluate the prospective impact of robotics (the use of sophisticated programmable or computer-controlled robots to perform routine and repetitious tasks) on employment in this country. Testimony and prepared reports were given by John Andelin, assistant director of Science,…

The findings of 22 significant and accessible studies of community involvement in school board policy formation, selected from over 130 relevant studies, are analyzed in this report to provide lay activists with information that could prove useful in efforts to influence policy-making. This information is organized in a question-and-answer format,…

Fourteen papers examine current issues and practices in the education of students with severe mental retardation (SMR). Papers touch upon the broad context of education for SMR students, programs for the SMR population, and critical issues. The following papers are presented: "The Severely Mentally Retarded Individual: Philosophical and…

Defining public services as the basic community/regional services which are provided to residents through tax receipts and service charges, this publication identifies variables for each service group and presents them in the form of questions that communities should find useful when analyzing impacts of growth. After listing questions dealing…

At Wytheville Community College (WCC) in Virginia, the seminal management style is collegial, while the seminal management structure is bureaucratic. Formal bureaucratic structures exist for normal and routine communication and for policy decisions. However, faculty are encouraged to share their concerns with the president and other administrators…

Projecting the prospects and possibilities for community colleges accurately is not an easy exercise due to the vulnerability of both internal and external conditions to unanticipated forces. One aspect of the community college that is particularly affected by external forces is enrollment. Enrollments are influenced by legislation, the decline in…

Countless reports have appeared during the past decade documenting the United States' failure to educate its citizens. These studies indicate that 27 million adult Americans have left school either unable to read and write, or unable to read sufficiently well to understand the most basic newspaper articles or official forms. These problems have…

Intended to help vocational instructors and administrators involve local advisory councils in improving the quality of vocational programs, this handbook provides information on the role of councils and makes specific suggestions on how administrators and instructors can prepare for council meetings and obtain feedback from council members. The…

A report by the Chancellor of the Massachusetts State Board of Regents notes that the effectiveness of public higher education in the state depends upon the excellence of the individual colleges and universities. Five sections deal respectively with: context; governance and coordination (stressing the need to act as a system); a proposal for…

This handbook is aimed at improving the effectiveness of school board members. Effectiveness of the individual board member has a direct bearing on the effectiveness of the whole board, superintendent of schools, school district, and policy formation. The major functions of the school board are discussed: (1) selection of the superintendents; (2)…

The California State Commission on Postsecondary Education recommends approval of a request by the Trustees of the California State University to establish a temporary upper-division and graduate off-campus center of San Jose State University in Salinas. Such approval of new or off-campus centers is required by California law. Following a history…

The national movement for educational reform that began in the 1980's has largely concentrated on improving the educational services provided to high school and preschool students. It is equally important to help elementary and middle school children and young adolescents at risk develop the social and basic academic skills needed to function at…

One of the working papers in the final report of the Arizona Board of Regents' (ABOR) Task Force on Excellence, Efficiency and Competitiveness, this document looks at ABOR and at the governance and decision making processes of Arizona's three public universities. ABOR is a body corporate charged with the governance of the three universities, which…

Discussed in this report is the MacArthur/Spencer Special Project on Educational Finance conducted on the campuses of the Illinois State University. This 5-year research effort is designed to conduct research into equity, adequacy, and efficiency aspects of educational finance in Illinois. When possible, conclusions and generalizations are…