This paper addresses the shortage of physicians providing medical services to rural communities in Queensland, Australia. Queensland is the fastest growing Australian state, but it has the lowest ratio of total doctors to population. Data indicate there may be twice as many patients per rural doctor compared with the city, which represents a…

This paper reports on the Contact Children's Mobile, a program developed in 1987 to provide educational and social enrichment opportunities for children from birth to 12 years who live in a large remote region surrounding Wanaaring, Australia. Two teachers travel an average of 800 kilometers weekly to make home visits or hold daylong educational…

A survey of 121 rural teachers in British Columbia examined their knowledge about and attitudes toward the inclusion of special needs students. In addition, the study examined rural teachers' knowledge of and ability to access resources in the school district and their individual schools. The survey questionnaire consisted of 114 questions related…

The West Virginia University Special Education Transition Project trains school guidance and rehabilitation counselors to support disabled students during school-to-work transition. Specifically, project goals are to develop, refine, and implement programs that provide school and rehabilitation counselors with transition and special education…

The rapid growth of special education programs has exceeded the capability of teacher training programs in West Virginia to fill new positions in schools serving children with learning or behavior disorders. The focus of the Mainstream Practicum Project is to train regular educators who are currently working as untrained, uncredentialed personnel…

This paper describes the development of a predictive model to determine potential high school dropouts and identify areas for intensified assistance at the individual or group level. V. Tinto's (1975, 1987) model of college attrition was validated for use with high school students in rural, low socioeconomic areas of the Southeast. Ex post facto…

Two statewide Montana projects address educational needs assessed through a biennial Comprehensive System of Personnel Development survey. Although addressing different needs, the projects use similar strategies for effective implementation in a large rural state. Montana Training for Inclusive Education is a program of inservice training,…

This paper reports on a study evaluating a graduate-level distance education program that provides special education teacher preparation at rural sites throughout Utah. The program was developed by the University of Utah to address problems associated with teacher recruitment and retention in rural areas. The program uses an "integrated"…

This paper examines the imbalance in representation of native-born Mainers on the school board in Mount Desert Island, Maine. Mount Desert Island is the location of Acadia, the second most visited national park in the United States. In this community, native-born Mainers represent 68 percent of the year-round population, but 80 percent of people…

Nebraska public schools have experienced a substantial growth in the numbers of children being served by special education programs, particularly in the past 10 years. This increase in services has greatly impacted state budget allotments for special education. For example in 1994, $115 million was appropriated to Nebraska school districts for…

During the spring of 1993, a needs assessment was conducted in rural Kansas communities to determine existing services and community strengths available to special needs children. Interviews were conducted with a cross section of the community regarding community resources, collaboration, parent and family involvement, planning processes, and…

This paper outlines results of three informal surveys identifying barriers that Native Americans face when trying to complete a college degree. For the first survey, 22 Native American students who had dropped out of Northern Arizona University indicated that family influences and responsibilities, lack of financial resources, campus attitudes…

This report describes a program developed by West Virginia University to address the increased demand for doctoral level special education personnel in higher education, particularly for colleges and universities in rural areas. Data indicate that the available pool of qualified teacher educators in special education has not been sufficient to…

This paper describes the North Dakota Statewide Mental Retardation/Developmental Disabilities Facility Staff Training Program. For the past 10 years, the training program, in association with Minot State University, has been available to agencies and their employees who provide services to individuals with developmental disabilities in rural…

Data for a study of learning within farmers' cooperatives were collected by interviewing members of 25 such cooperatives in Imo State of Nigeria. Information was also gathered from a literature review and interviews with Nigerian government officials who worked closely with cooperatives. Three types of cooperative associations were identified:…