This toolkit is designed to help community schools evaluate their efforts so that they learn from their successes, identify current challenges, and plan future efforts. It provides a step-by-step process for planning and conducting an evaluation at your community school site(s). The toolkit is a practical, hands-on guide that makes it possible for…

This booklet is written from the perspective that small towns can survive in changing times with the right leadership. It is intended for use by educators involved with community development or by extension educators. The attitudes and behaviors of leaders are key factors that will help communities cope with change. No longer will a town survive…

This booklet presents ideas based on actions taken by community leaders to recruit new and emerging leaders to join in the improvement of a community. The discussion includes: (1) asking the question "who's not here?" to make sure the community organization is representative; (2) looking for skills, not names to discover leadership…

This study of 12 Nebraska public school districts' boards of education looked at the characteristics of types of people addressing boards on matters that concern them. Public presentations tended to focus on high school issues, curriculum areas, finances, and students. Nine out of 10 public presentations were positive, praising the schools rather…

Designed to systematically assist local districts to delineate, organize, plan, and implement career education programs, this planning guide presents a twelve-part task analysis. The twelve task analysis sheets are designed to suggest methods and techniques for local school districts of use in achieving twelve goals established by the Nebraska…

School district reorganization is a process that requires considerable planning. This guide provides information on school district reorganization in the state of Nebraska, to interested boards of education and county and citizen reorganization committees. Topics discussed include planning for reorganization, establishing citizen committees, using…

The 12 states comprising the North Central Region have been affected in similar ways by the farm crisis of the 1980s. Statewide surveys show sizeable proportions of farm operations that are experiencing moderately high levels of financial stress. The problems caused by chronic stress on family structure and functioning, the loss of mainstreet…

These guidelines, which represent a standard of quality exceeding minimum licensing, approval, and accreditation requirements, were prepared for use by most types of public and private early childhood programs. Child care centers, early childhood special education programs, preschools, nursery schools, Head Start programs, kindergartens, and…

This booklet emphasizes the importance of National Education Goal 1, which states that all children should be ready to learn when they start school. The booklet also explains the educational and social effects that early childhood programs can have on young children, and shows how the Nebraska State Board of Education, citizen groups, and school…

The document presents organizational details of the 18-month Country School Legacy Project (June 1980-December 1981) to begin an on-going inquiry into the history of rural education and current public policies which affect country schools and which will result in greater public use of library facilities and historical collections in public,…

Designed to assist the Nebraska Coordinating Commission for Postsecondary Education (NCCPE) in the development of a statewide policy for transfer of credit from two- and four-year postsecondary institutions and a smooth transition from secondary to postsecondary learning, this report describes articulation agreements and cooperative programs in…

Developed to assist policymakers and family service providers, this document is an inventory of programs for Nebraska children and families, focusing on service programs and excluding basic elementary and secondary education. The programs described fall into 16 areas: (1) abuse and neglect, including prevention and protection; (2) adoption; (3)…