"À Descoberta do Mundo Rural" [Discovering the Rural World] was a 15-month-long project, based on a partnership between the Institute of Educational Communities (ICE) and the Portuguese Association for Local Development (ANIMAR), both Portuguese NGOs, and financed by national and European funds. Its purpose was to identify and give…

In this age of declining enrollments, alternatives exist to boarding up schools that are no longer being fully utilized. This paper discusses such alternatives by describing the situation in a Minnesota school district. Of the four elementary school buildings closed in St. Louis Park in the past five years, one was sold to a developer, two are…

Declining enrollments in many geographic areas result in space being available for a community school in many existing school buildings. Describes community school facilities that have been developed from found space. (Author/DN)

Declining birthrate and government budgets, population migration, and inflation require that educators understand the recycling and rehabilitation process for facilities and sites. A project profile considers design changes and costs. Business/community cooperation is important; rehabilitation tax credits are available. Administrative…

Situating the University of Thessaly in Volos and Larissa, Greece, represents the idea that the university has a role to play in the community, and, therefore, its facilities are integrated within the city. Describes an old factory warehouse converted to create "a building within a building," while preserving style of the former factory…

For over a quarter of a century architect Giancarlo de Carlo has been designing and carrying out a master plan to revitalize the historic city of Urbino (Italy) and the University of Urbino. A convent built in the 16th century was converted to a new law school. (MLF)

As the birthrate plunges, a resourceful building team finds school construction activity shifting to conversions, renovations, and the design of new schools called human resource centers. Describes programs in Thomas Jefferson Junior High School in Arlington, Virginia; the Whitman Center in Pontiac, Michigan; and the John F. Kennedy School and…

A guide intended to be used by boards of education and administrators lists economical and socially useful ways to put unwanted schools back to work. Items include minimizing community opposition, help that can be obtained from consultants, zoning questions, and some alternative building uses that may be considered. (Author/MLF)

An edited version of the report of the Subcommittee on Urban Education which arose out of the AIA Committee on Architecture for Education. (Author)

School of education facilities at the University of Urbino (Italy), originally an 18th-century convent and chapel, are organized around an open courtyard and a semicircular lecture-theatre hall. Open to the community are the theater, a cinema, and a cafe. (MLF)

Community education's greatest future potential may lie in the conversion of existing school facilities to community schools. (Author/DN)

Examples from some of the successful major techniques to use vacant spaces for special programs and services that will benefit students and the community. (Author/MLF)

Examines the legal aspects and problems of school ownership, school closing, and reuse of school property. Proposes new legislation establishing "community/schools" that vests ownership of school property in the municipality in which the property is located. (Author/MLF)

The closing of a school is a difficult step for everyone involved. In this review, 11 entries in the ERIC system about school closing are summarized. Included are suggestions for administrators to involve the community in the decision-making, and alternative uses of school buildings. Case studies are included that highlight how school districts…