In 2007, the Kettering Foundation launched a nationwide, two-year research project to learn what people in communities across the nation think about the achievement gap--and what roles they see for themselves in helping young people succeed academically. The community forums, which drew more than 3,200 participants nationwide, spotlighted elements…

The first part of this report contains a case study from each of the eight southern states participating in a late 1970s project which focused primarily on the organization of rural counties for making decisions that affect the well-being of county residents. In the second section, the study counties (identified as low income in 1950) are placed…