These two annotated listings cite organizations, groups, and programs that provide information on international social affairs. The entries were selected from the data base of the National Referral Center of the Library of Congress. Listings are organized under the following headings: volunteer agencies; food; law; health; population; rural…

This document examines policy and program issues related to promoting employment retention among recipients of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) who have moved from welfare into employment. The document begins with background information about the work requirements and time limits affecting TANF recipients. The second section…

Collaboration and coordination among providers of social and health services have long been prescribed for remedying fragmented service systems and achieving integrated services. Yet ambitious efforts to achieve these goals have often been disappointing. This three-year study examined the Family and Community Partnership (FCP) in Palm Beach…

In April 2002, the Bush Administration announced the "Good Start, Grow Smart" (GSGS) initiative to help States and local communities strengthen early learning for young children. The goal of GSGS is to ensure that young children enter kindergarten with the skills they will need to succeed at reading and other early learning activities. GSGS…

One of the stated aims of government policy in England is to put teaching, training and learning at the heart of the learning and skills system. This paper provides a critical review of policies on teaching, learning and assessment in the learning and skills sector over the past five years. It draws upon data collected and analysed in the early…

The emergence--at the dawn of the new millennium--of "independent agencies", "national commissions" and "councils" around the world, has been based and justified on grounds of "impartiality", "reliability", "democratic-principles guardianship", or even "technical competence".…

Many communities offer programs aimed at improving teen dating skills and knowledge about violence and sexual behavior. This research study evaluates one such program, operated by an interagency collaborative. Each of four participating community agencies provided one hour of curriculum during one week of health class. Lecture, group activities,…

The 1999 National Education Act emphasizes the importance of quality assurance and national education standards. The main principle of educational provision of high standard lies in recognition of the importance of assessment for enhancing educational quality and raising the standard. Such recognition has led to establishment in Thailand of the…

A few days before President Bush officially released his 2008 budget, administration officials announced that it would contain a historic increase in the maximum Pell Grant. The increase in Pell Grants would be paid for by cutting subsidies for student loans, a step that experts predicted could induce lenders to offer fewer benefits to borrowers.…

The "Closing the Achievement Gap" series explores the Casey Foundation's education investments and presents stories, results, and lessons learned. This publication provides an in-depth look at Foundation support of community schools, including selected results and lessons learned. It also includes stories about one California school…

Throughout the end of the 1990s and the early years of the current decade, states experienced severe downturns in their economies. As has happened during other recessions, higher education, often viewed as discretionary spending compared to other budget demands, was hit particularly hard. During these years of severe fiscal constraints, however, a…

With all the new advances in library technology--including metadata, social networking, and Web 2.0, along with the advent of nonlibrary and for-profit digital information companies like Wikisource and Google Print--librarians have barely had time to reflect on the nontechnical implications of these innovations. They need to take a step back and…

Aims: The aims of this study were: (i) to describe the nature of and the extent to which community-based organizations (CBOs) in Cape Town provide services to people who have alcohol and other drug (AOD) problems; (ii) to examine the relationship between CBOs' attitudes towards individuals with AOD problems and the types of services provided; and…

Objective: To reduce mental health symptoms and high-risk behaviors and increase social support and service utilization among street-living youth, the authors conducted a pilot study to assess the feasibility of the social enterprise intervention (SEI) at a homeless youth agency. Method: Convenience sampling was used to recruit 16 street-living…

This report makes a number of recommendations on new directions for the development of child well-being indicators. For developmental transitions throughout early childhood, the authors call for standardizing birth records across states, collecting additional data at immunization visits, and creating common assessments at kindergarten entry. For…