This guide is intended to be a resource for parents of children with special needs who want to improve the early intervention system in North Carolina for their own children and for the whole community. By informing parents about resources that are available for children and families, the guide empowers parents as leaders. Annotated lists of…

A theme common to recommendations for change in school leader preparation is that preparation be grounded in practice and include field-based experience or internship. Despite recognition for reform, substantial change has been slow to emerge. This study was conducted in North Carolina in 1995 to assess revised leadership preparation programs…

This skills packet is part of the North Carolina Helping Education in Low-Performing Schools program. This initiative helps educators establish ties with technical-assistance partners who can facilitate school-improvement efforts. The skills packet, which was designed to be delivered by a skilled trainer, focuses on leadership development. Its…

Sixty-one interns, who completed the Master of School Administration program at a North Carolina university, and their 49 principal-mentors, when asked what interpersonal and professional characteristics and assignment concerns they perceive as important when selecting and assigning mentors, listed strong leadership abilities and high…

The American Management Association examined the feasibility of improving the effectiveness of educational institutions through business management principles. Target systems were the State Agency Executive Staff, the State Agency Division of Program Services, and two local districts each in Maryland and North Carolina. Each management team from…

This paper discusses the development of the Basic Skills Model, a theoretical framework that has enabled North Carolina educators to propose to the Department of Public Instruction the development of a curriculum for high school juniors and seniors with disabilities. The curriculum is designed to enable students to gain the necessary skills to…

This paper describes and reflects on the pedagogical meaning of a festival held to showcase and celebrate Latin American culture in a North Carolina town undergoing a cultural transition as its Latino population grows. Following a successful event the previous year, a 2-day festival was organized to include a soccer tournament, booths selling…

The Duke Endowment's Program for the Rural Carolinas is a 5-year effort to assist the revitalization of rural communities. Guiding principles of the program are that the rural Carolinas matter, this generation of workers matters, effective community development involves the entire community, solutions must be locally determined, healthy…

This report describes the origin, purposes, and operation of the North Carolina Leadership Institute for Principals. Initiated in July 1979 by the State Superintendent for Public Instruction and supported by state funds, the institute develops programs that blend theory into practice, concentrating mainly on the development of leadership,…

This paper describes how one North Carolina state university redefined its educational leadership program after facing state demands to alter leadership preparation. Concurrent with other national initiatives to reform preparation of school leaders, this initiative was designed to rethink the purpose and function of leadership preparation. After…

Part of a larger professional continuing education effort (See AC 008 840), this series of ten leadership training sessions for public health workers was evaluted for overall effectiveness. All participants (201 local and 38 State Board of Health personnel) were surveyed by questionnaire and evaluation scale. Relationships were sought between…

North Carolina's legislature mandated changes in principal preparation programs and funded a program for Principal Fellows to receive loans for a full-time, 2-year program toward initial administrator licensure. This paper examines data from three innovative components in one university's program under that mandate: extended internships,…

Includes six articles: "Accomplishing Goal II through Learning Networks" (Murphy); "Agricultural Education in the Elementary Classroom" (Needham); "Investment for Today in Tomorrow's Agricultural Leaders" (Franklin, Portillo); "Experience--The Real Teacher" (Moore); "4-H: Offering Lifelong, Seamless…

Most of the 27 enrollees in the institute were employed in administrative positions within the North Carolina Community College System. The institute consisted primarily of 3-hour presentations on topics related to the conference theme of "Institutional Effectiveness in Building Communities." Two types of evaluations were conducted. The…