This article examines the role of two African American-owned and -operated bookstores in the literacy practices and education of their participants. Part of a larger ethnographic study of Participatory Literacy Communities (PLCs), this study shows how featured authors and audience participants considered these bookstores as both alternative and…

Interviews were conducted with 60 human-services-agency staff of the Child and Adolescent Service System Program in California and 67 parents of children with serious emotional disturbance regarding changes over the previous four years in their local children's service systems. Results indicate increased interagency collaboration and family…

Describes a special Head Start initiative called Free to Grow: Head Start Partnerships to Promote Substance-Free Communities. Notes five such Head Start programs in Puerto Rico, Kentucky, California, Colorado, and New York that have designed substance abuse prevention models to strengthen families and neighborhoods by providing a healthy…

The vision for parent involvement presented in this document supports the California State Board of Education's policy initiative on parent involvement. Adopted in January 1989, the initiative includes a policy that encourages school districts and schools to implement long-term, comprehensive programs that build on the strengths of families. The…

The Family Kindergarten program designed and pilot tested by a bilingual kindergarten teacher at Garretson Elementary School in Corona, California, is described. Based on the premise that parents are the most important and influential educators of children, Family Kindergarten was conceived as an evening class that includes parents and children…

The purpose of this pilot study was to describe the participation of farm women in farm work in one California country. Women from 228 farms, approximately 55 percent of the farms in Yolo County, California, were interviewed by telephone concerning their efforts and roles on the family farm. The study found that the main criterion of whether or…

This paper contains the revised drug education guidelines for the state of California, which emphasize prevention of alcohol and drug abuse. The materials define school-based alcohol and drug abuse prevention programming as a comprehensive process that not only provides students with accurate information about alcohol and drugs, but also enhances…

THE MAJOR PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO DETERMINE IF THERE WERE SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT RESPONSES TO CERTAIN ECOLOGICAL, ECONOMIC, SOCIAL AND CIVIC RESPONSIBILITY FACTORS BETWEEN PARENTS WHOSE CHILDREN PARTICIPATED IN THE HEAD START PROJECT AND THOSE WHOSE CHILDREN WERE ELIGIBLE BUT DID NOT PARTICIPATE. ALL PARENTS OF PRE-SCHOOL CHILDREN, 2 1/2 TO…

Contrasts a group of informal kinship care providers in Philadelphia (KIDS'n'KIN Program) with two "formal" kinship care groups in Baltimore and California, examining similarities and differences in child and caregiver demographies and service needs. Presents the program's response to the needs of informal kinship care providers.…

This report describes the experiences of one California nonprofit agency which evolved, in less than 3 years, from supporting 65 people with autism and other challenging behaviors in 13 group homes to supporting 57 people who live in their own homes. The report describes the program's initial focus on providing integrated services in the group…

California state law A.B. 2666 establishes standards for provision of preschool special education programs and services for eligible children, aged 3-5, and their families. This handbook was developed as a resource in planning and implementing appropriate service models, and is organized into four major sections: "General…

Highlights qualitative studies from two preschools that view the framework of literacy use as socially constructed and embedded in social and cultural perspectives and practices of communities. Suggests ways to strengthen early-childhood programs, including greater use of writing and drawing materials readily available, additional orientation to…

A COMPENSATORY EDUCATION PROGRAM TO IMPROVE COMMUNICATION SKILLS WAS INITIATED IN 27 ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS. DAILY SESSIONS OF 45 TO 50 MINUTES WERE SCHEDULED FOR 60 PUPILS IN GROUPS OF 12. DURING THE 1964-65 SCHOOL YEAR PRIORITY WAS GIVEN TO THE NEEDS OF THIRD-GRADE STUDENTS. BEFORE ASSIGNMENT TO THE COMPENSATORY CLASSES, EACH CHILD WAS TESTED TO…

Ideas to guide parental involvement in educational programs for children are provided in this booklet. Topics that are discussed are: why it is important to involve parents; how parents can be reached; guidelines for involving parents; the parents' role; how parents may involve themselves in their child's school; activities for parental…

This learning activities guide was developed as part of Project CRAFT (Culturally Responsive and Family Focused Training), an effort to train service providers in California in ways of working with young children (particularly those with disabilities) and their families from diverse cultural backgrounds. The learning activities are intended to be…