Hispanic students have higher dropout rates and lower academic achievement than Anglo students. While schools have begun to address the issue of underachievement, some community groups have implemented enrichment programs that focus on the affective domain--self-esteem, family values, and cultural pride. This digest describes and synthesizes the…

This digest, drawn from a larger study, looks at six community colleges and community college systems in regard to how they are attempting to serve their urban communities. The author defines urban community colleges as being in or close to major cities, and serving large numbers of economically and educationally disadvantaged students from…

Resilience is a quality that characterizes children who, though exposed to significant stress and adversity in their lives, do not succumb to the school and life failures predicted for them. Recent research suggests ways that schools and communities can protect children from the threats that confront individuals and families. This digest…

The "At-Risk Youth in Crisis Handbook" series has been designed to promote inter-agency agreement on procedures for schools to follow in managing crisis situations with at-risk students. Volume 1 explains the rationale for the Handbook, tells how it was developed, and guides school districts in adapting the Handbook to meet their own…

Presents a case study of an assessment project designed to evaluate the Ford Foundation's Urban Partnership Program (UPP). Discusses UPP's assessment model and theory, and documents the project's yearly progress since its inception in 1992. Details UPP's goals and outcomes in assisting at-risk students. (EMH)

A youth suicide became the impetus for an Oregon education service district's leadership in spearheading a collaborative effort with local schools and community agencies to develop a handbook detailing acceptable, proven guidelines for appropriate interventions. This volume of the handbook series is designed to provide educators with appropriate…

This digest is drawn from the spring 2002 issue of New Directions for Community Colleges, titled "Next Steps for the Community College." It summarizes three overlapping challenges facing colleges in the coming decade: educating a more diverse student body, assessing student outcomes, and maintaining the educated workforce needed to meet…

Issues in defining and conceptualizing general education in the two-year college are examined in this collection of essays. After introductory remarks, B. Lamar Johnson reviews the findings of the 1952 California Study of General Education and discusses their current applicability. Next, K. Patricia Cross reviews trends in general education from…

Five key issues can serve to summarize the complexity of the restructuring process and some of the challenges being faced: (1) developing a vision that unites projects; (2) identifying outcomes that will be assessed; (3) obtaining the active support of the community; (4) redefining the role of principals from power-wielders to facilitators; and…

Guidelines for responding to immediate crisis situations in attendance and strategies for longterm prevention are presented in this handbook, which stresses the need for interagency cooperation. The handbook serves as a model for both content and process, with the ultimate aim of promoting an arena in which the most appropriate service delivery…

The children who have generally been termed "at-risk" are usually poor and often from other cultural backgrounds. Schools need to find ways to reach and involve at-risk families with their children's education. Steps include collaboration with other community agencies, helping parents identify what they are capable of doing, and…

This essay examines characteristics of high risk students, institutional problems related to their presence in schools, and various solutions to these problems that have been implemented at the secondary, junior college, and collegiate levels. Areas discussed in which high risk students may differ from other students include cognitive ability,…

This digest focuses on the importance of learning assistance centers (LACs) to academic success and student retention. LACs differ from learning resource centers, which mainly provide and disseminate educational information. They also differ from development education offices, which give emphasis to teaching basic skills and preparing students for…

Current approaches to educating at-risk students are the result of several shifts in thinking over the last 35 years, and a new way of defining at-risk students is needed to permit changes in school policy and practice to meet these students' needs. Cultural deprivation was originally considered the single cause of at-risk status. Subsequently,…

Designed to encompass multiple perspectives and orientations on community college-high school cooperation, this collection of essays provides a theoretical and historical background to joint programs between colleges and schools and describes a sample of current approaches. The volume includes: (1) "Reconnecting Youth: The New Wave of Reform," by…