Scholarly community engagement in higher education historically focused on the 4-year university, as a result there is limited research on how community colleges engage with their communities. In 2006, The Carnegie Foundation established a new Elective Community Engagement classification for higher education institutions. Research on Carnegie…

The focus of this research is to provide a framework for community colleges and community-based organizations to partner in a manner that improves student outcomes in persistence and graduation rates. The proposed framework encourages digital student engagement that assists students with their non-academic needs, such as hunger or homelessness.…

This case study focuses on the way a neighborhood association connects schools to broad change in an urban neighborhood of a large Midwestern city. The first section provides a review of the literature on community involvement in school and neighborhood reform. It reviews the historical origins of the current school-community relationship, the…

E-government is often defined as the public organization's use of information and communication technologies for the production and delivery of information and services. Since the early 1990s, e-government initiatives have been understood as a technological innovation mechanism aimed at reaching greater levels of efficiency, effectiveness, and…

This dissertation examines the effects of participation in grassroots organizing on the capacity and commitment of public school parents and community members to engage in future activism. The study used a mixed-methods research design, drawing on qualitative and quantitative data collected from individuals involved in seven exemplar…

Disparities in academic achievement begin in early childhood, before children step foot into a classroom. These early gaps, often along racial and economic lines, widen throughout children's academic careers because children who are well-prepared at entry are able to take full advantage of school, while children who enter less prepared spend more…

Effective partnerships for education reform "require that schools view parents and communities not simply as customers or clients but as partners in the educational process" (Sanders, 2009, p. 1695). In 2012, seven Seattle area school districts and the Puget Sound Educational Service District (the PSESD) were awarded funding for the Road…

This case study focuses upon the transformational experiences of 28 social service and pastoral workers engaged in a Reflection Circle Process (RCP) in San Antonio, TX. The RCP involves the writing of a holistic journal entry, known as a process note, coupled with an in-depth exploration of the note with the help of a group of trusted peers, known…

This researcher examined three selected New York City community-based organizations' roles in student mentoring and the building of social capital. The methodology included focus group interviews, individual interviews, shadowing, and the collection of archival materials. The data were analyzed through pattern, theme and discrepancy analysis to…

Community organizations, especially those aiming at social change, play a significant role in establishing societal health and contributing to adult learning in daily communities. Their existence secures marginalized groups' involvement in society and enhances community development by building community leadership with multiple stakeholders…

Policymakers are increasingly turning to expanded learning time (ELT) as a strategy for improving student achievement. This trend is impacting community-based organizations' (CBOs) work in schools, pushing them to focus more on academics and engage with schools in new ways. Most notably, grantees of the federal 21st Century Community Learning…

Broadly defined as the combination and/or integration of participation in a community service activity with formal learning and reflection (Clark, 1999; Reising, Allen, & Hall, 2006; Tucker, McCarthy, & Lenk, 1998; Yan & Rodgers, 2006), service-learning activities range from voluntary student organized initiatives to mandatory…

Currently the United States is home to a large and increasing immigrant population. Many of these immigrant students use community-based programs for their educational needs. Despite the large number of immigrant students who currently use alternate resources, such as churches and community centers, for education, adult language learners in…

The School of Planning Policy and Development at the University of Southern California brought together representatives of neighborhood councils and city agencies of the city of Los Angeles together in an action research program. This action research program called the Collaborative Learning Project developed a collaboration process called the…

The process of social change draws upon the strength of many individuals to build a strong collective, develop a shared vision, exercise the power required to necessitate change, and join forces in solidarity. This study examined the role of one particular group in this process, lawyers, by identifying their leadership characteristics and…