Community-university partnerships are a critical vehicle for promoting sustainability, and the partnerships themselves can be sustained by ensuring that participants achieve mutual benefits in terms of their respective goals and missions. Although the literature emphasizes mutuality and reciprocity, fewer studies investigate community partners'…

Child- and family-serving programs in community-based settings wield tremendous power for improving the lives of infants and toddlers. In this article, three authors, from Ohio, Montana, and Sierra Leone, describe the principles of adaptive leadership and will share their real-world applications. Their stories explore critical questions for…

Community coalitions play an important role in community-wide strategies to promote health and wellbeing, and Extension professionals may provide leadership, technical assistance, and other support to coalitions. Extension professionals across a Midwestern state were invited to participate in an online survey about their coalition involvement and…

Nature education is an important part of early childhood education. As young children develop, the natural world offers concrete and authentic learning experiences. Activities focused on nature support learning in all developmental domains. Children develop physically through hiking in natural terrain, climbing hills and trees, balancing on logs,…

Spurred both by fiscal realities and momentum from the U.S. Department of Education's agenda for school improvement, local and state education leaders are moving forcefully and quickly to make big changes to districts and schools that have long struggled with low test scores and graduation rates. In Kansas City, Missouri, the school board voted…

Examines the scope of volunteer efforts in Coldwater, Ohio, a small rural community of approximately 4,400 people. Describes how diverse volunteer organizations developed to address community needs and their impact on community improvement, local activities, and area schools. (LP)