An overview is provided of the community college sector of Canadian post-secondary education. The first section points out the characteristics shared by the wide range of institutions termed "community colleges," indicating that: (1) they are public institutions with low or no tuition for conventional full-time students; (2) they are…

A strike by teachers in the David Douglas School District of suburban Portland, Oregon, in 1978 lasted only a week and was unsuccessful in obtaining contract concessions. This document describes how the district's administration, board, building principals, and public relations specialist cooperated as a team to limit the strike's effects. Key…

Arguing that technological change often affects the organizational structure of library workplaces, this paper presents two alternative approaches to the implementation of change in organizational structures, provides several examples of each approach, and suggests related reading materials. It is noted that the configurational approach…

This paper looks at the meaning of academic freedom and threats to that freedom in recent conflicts and legal rulings. The introduction calls academic freedom confusing and widely misunderstood and offers an historical and legal explanation of the concept as well as discussion of the traditional areas of conflict in instruction, research,…

Multi-year employee contracts can substantially reduce the time and energy that goes into negotiations. In this transcript, panelists from the Strongsville (Ohio) city schools discuss their recent 5-year settlement with their non-teaching (classified) employees. Each panelist is introduced, and then the first, James Marietta, provides an overview…

This paper selectively reviews education law since 1954 and forecasts trends and major issues for the 1980's. Two trends are foreseen: increasing conflict between social goals and individual rights, and greater emphasis on "housekeeping" issues. Five upcoming issues are then examined with reference to recent litigation and legislation…

The ways collective bargaining affects the operation of public schools are identified. Teachers covered by bargaining agreements, compared with teachers not covered, receive higher salaries and teach smaller classes. They also spend slightly less time instructing students but more time preparing for classes. The major difference detected in the…

This report describes a problem-solving approach to grievance settling and negotiations developed in the Brighton, Michigan, school district and inspired by the book, "Getting To Yes," by Roger Fisher and William Ury. In this approach teachers and administrators come to the table not with fixed positions but with problems both sides want…