Full Description
Over the past two decades, a democratic, engaged civic university movement has developed across the United States. A central feature of this movement has been university-community partnerships in which higher education institutions work with organizations and schools in their local community. Much of this work has focused on the education and development of young people. Over time, significant change has occurred regarding both the quantity and quality of partnerships, and intriguing models have been developed. Nevertheless, significant challenges remain. The struggle to achieve transformative democratic practice in the face of seemingly intractable obstacles resides at the heart of this volume of New Directions for Youth Development. It requires, among other things, overcoming traditional ivory tower thinking and doing; developing creative, comprehensive approaches; and engaging in long-term, democratic, collaborative work. Five university-community partnerships from across the United States are featured in this volume. Each has been developed over a number of years and has focused on making a genuine difference in the condition of young people and their schools and communities.With case studies from OL {list-style:disc}P:{margin-left 60px} State University of New York, Buffalo Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis University of Pennsylvania University of Dayton Widener University Each case study demonstrates that university-school-community partnerships have the capacity to build communities, advance democracy, and enhance the quality of life and learning for all Americans, particularly its children. " New Directions for Youth Development (NDYD) plays a special, central role in building the youth development field. It not only keeps policymakers, practitioners and researchers informed about the 'new directions' relevant to their interests, it also serves as generative "cross-pollinator" bridging these different communities." Milbrey McLaughlin David Jacks Professor of Education and Public Policy, Stanford University This is the 122nd volume of New Directions for Youth Development , the Jossey-Bass quarterly report series dedicated to bringing together everyone concerned with helping young people, including scholars, practitioners, and people from different disciplines and professions.The result is a unique resource presenting thoughtful, multi-faceted approaches to helping our youth develop into responsible, stable, well-rounded citizens.
Contents
Issue Editors' Notes 1 Ira Harkavy, Matthew Hartley Executive Summary 3 1. University-school-community partnerships for youth development and democratic renewal 7 Ira Harkavy, Matthew Hartley Authentic, democratic partnerships that involve universities, schools, and an array of neighborhood and community organizations are the most promising means of improving the lives of our nation's young people. 2. The connection: Schooling, youth development, and community building--The Futures Academy case 19 Henry Louis Taylor Jr., Linda Greenough McGlynn The Futures Academy is a partnership between a K--8 public school in an inner-city neighborhood in Buffalo, New York, and the Center for Urban Studies at the State University of New York at Buffalo. It seeks to create opportunities for students to apply the knowledge and skills they learn in the classroom to the goal of working with others to make their neighborhood a better place. 3. George Washington Community High School: Analysis of a partnership network 41 Robert G. Bringle, Starla D. H. Officer, Jim Grim, Julie A. Hatcher This article analyzes the unique partnership between residents and neighborhood organizations of the Near Westside of Indianapolis and Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis in establishing the George Washington Community High School. 4. The Agatston Urban Nutrition Initiative: Working to reverse the obesity epidemic through academically based community service 61 Francis E. Johnston The Agatston Urban Nutrition Initiative is a collaboration between a premier research university and the community to address the issue of obesity in children and youth through a problem-solving approach to learning. 5. Dayton's Neighborhood School Centers 81 Dick Ferguson This article describes the planning and implementation of Dayton's Neighborhood School Centers, a bold initiative of the University of Dayton, the Dayton Foundation, Dayton Public Schools, City of Dayton, Montgomery County, and sixteen foundation and corporate supporters. They sought to reconnect five Dayton public elementary schools to their neighborhoods after more than thirty years of court-ordered busing and to create fullservice, year-round opportunities for neighborhood families and youth at these new schools. 6. The president's role in advancing civic engagement: The Widener-Chester partnership 107 James T. Harris III This account, presented from the perspective of Widener University's president, highlights the challenges associated with engaging in such work and provides insight into advancing an institution-wide civic engagement agenda. Index 127
