This article explores issues that had to be confronted over a three-year period in terms of two New York State funded grants for which I was the evaluator. Major, critical challenges are presented, described, and discussed. Specifically, the paper addresses issues related to lack of planning at the grant design stage that resulted in challenges…

A safe environment is a prerequisite for productive learning. Using a unique panel data set of survey responses from New York City middle school students, the article provides insight into the relationship between feelings of safety in the classroom and academic achievement. The survey data include the reported feelings of safety for more than…

The goal of this study was to understand whether ethnic pride among young, incarcerated Black and Latino men was associated with successful community reentry. We interviewed 397 Black and Latino men 16 to 18 years old in a New York City jail and then again 1 year after their release to determine the relationship between participants' sense of…

PUBLISHED BY VOLUNTEERS IN SERVICE TO AMERICA (VISTA), THIS JOURNAL ISSUE CONSISTS OF FOUR ARTICLES WHICH DESCRIBE LIFE AMONG THE URBAN AND RURAL POOR. THE ARTICLES DISCUSS (1) A SLUM AREA IN MIAMI, FLORIDA, (2) GHETTO GANGS, (3) AN ORGANIZATION OF ARCHITECTS AND LAWYERS COMMITTED TO IMPROVING SLUM HOUSING CONDITIONS IN NEW YORK CITY AND TO…

It has been the contention of researchers that the "old heads" (identified by Anderson in 1990 and Wilson in 1987) of the ghettos and barrios of America have voluntarily or involuntarily left the community, leaving behind new generations of youth without adult role models and legitimate social controllers. This absence of an adult strata…

In order to examine the phenomenon of gangs among Chinese youths in New York, interviews were conducted with members of the Chinatown community and with persons working in this community. In this document the texts of the author's discussions with eight individuals are presented. A social worker who works with delinquent Chinese youth and a former…

THE HORNER BOYS CLUB IN CHICAGO REACHES OUT INTO THE COMMUNITY AND HELPS CHANNEL GANG MEMBERS INTO A CLUB SITUATION WITH CONSTRUCTIVE FORMS OF ACTIVITY. IN LOS ANGELES, A DEPUTY PROBATION OFFICER ORGANIZED A SERVICE CALLED GROUP GUIDANCE IN WHICH PROBATION OFFICERS WORK WITH THE HARD-CORE CITY GANGS THAT ARE NOT HANDLED BY CONVENTIONAL…

This book examines the role of three major social institutions--community, school, and family--in helping Chinese immigrant children cope with and adapt to a new life in New York City. The following aspects of Chinese life are explored: (1) immigration networking; (2) determinants of immigrant types; (3) the community; (4) the school--enrollment…

Martin Sanchez Jankowski conducted a 10-year study of gangs of varying ethnicity in three major cities, with a focus on New York City and Los Angeles (California). The center of his research has been in low-income areas, where gangs have been an institution for more than 150 years. Jankowski acquired experience by living with gangs from a variety…