This paper presents findings from a survey of 34 food policy councils (FPCs) in California. The survey addressed organizational structure and functions, policy priorities and achievements, and the use of research or other information. We find that most FPCs have formed in recent years, operate with small budgets and limited or no staff, and…

Community Learning Centers (CLC) provide extended learning opportunities for students and families that live in fiscally under-resourced communities. These centers provide opportunities for academic enrichment. This includes an array of additional services, programs, and activities. The programs should be designed to reinforce and complement the…

For much of the past decade, suicide has been the second leading cause of death for adolescents in the United States, and suicide rates among adolescents have been rising for the last 15 years. Suicidal thoughts and behaviors among adolescents were common before COVID-19 and have become an increasing public health priority in the pandemic's wake.…

This article describes the first year of a partnership between a university and a community organization working to improve and expand a community-based multigenerational mentoring program for African American adolescent girls ages 12-17. The mentoring program, set in an urban Midwestern city, is a collaboration between university…

Several factors contribute to the challenges community college leaders face in maintaining and sustaining noncredit workforce development programming. For example, these factors include funding reductions from state legislators and corporations using internal training departments for workforce development. There are community colleges that do…

Utilisation of community management strategies is an approach to governance that is based on community and organisational involvement. Communities with development projects have formed community projects management committees (CPMCs) that are encouraged to adopt the community management strategy in the planning and financing of community…

Mayors play a crucial role in helping people attain the education and skills necessary to enter the workforce and climb the economic ladder. While many American cities are thriving today, they are also home to rising levels of economic inequality, driven in part by the difficulty non-college-educated workers face in securing family-sustaining…

Many professionals in the early childhood field are inspired by community-driven initiatives that hold great promise for transforming outcomes for the youngest children and their families. However, most collective impact efforts are mobilized in large urban areas, where early childhood professionals and civic leaders take the lead. New Mexico has…

In this second annual summary of the their work, the Investing in Community Initiative provides practical advice for community leaders and policymakers around four critical issues. First, how should local needs be defined? Chapter 1 argues that data about local economies can show whether communities are best served by creating new jobs,…

As additional states embark on the process of implementing four-year degrees at community colleges, they can learn from others' experience for help navigating the legislative, regulatory, and program approval processes. This brief uses examples from states currently offering bachelor's degrees at their community colleges to provide guidance for…

Family-focused early learning programs aim to assist parents in supporting their young children language and literacy development. This study examined program access and learning opportunities for diverse families across a wide range of community-based settings in one eastern Canadian province. As well, the study examined practitioners'…

For many non-traditional candidates, the path into teaching is riddled with bumps and detours. They must pay for increasingly expensive coursework and certification costs, attend classes that conflict with work schedules, and forgo wages to complete unfunded student teaching requirements. These roadblocks can deter valuable local…

Since the reauthorization of The Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) in 2008, postsecondary programs that include individuals with intellectual developmental disability have seen a phenomenal increase. In 2015, a National Coordinating Center along with 52 Transition and Postsecondary Programs for Students with Intellectual Disabilities (TPSID)…

Building relationships and community collaborations--especially on an institutional level--is a slow and long-term process. These types of innovative, experimental, and long-term collaborations with community organizations and groups often lead art institutions to reflect on the value and place of their institutional structures when engaging in…

Work-based learning (WBL) has long been used in career and technical education (CTE) to allow students to practice the knowledge and skills they acquire in the classroom within a "real-world" business or industry setting. High-quality work placements reinforce schoolbased instruction by providing students with a context for applying…