Learning Together: The Developing Field of School-Community Initiatives.

To provide more information about school-community initiatives, a mapping project was developed to show the broad outlines of the movement to bring about change through school-community efforts and to show some of the movement's more specialized details. Focusing on initiatives at the kindergarten through grade 12 level, the mapping project selected 20 initiatives as examples. Part 1 of the report, "Charting the Basic Terrain," describes four major approaches to school-community initiatives, the primary purposes and strategies associated with each approach, and the relationships among them. Part 2 of the report, "Mapping Key Features," describes 10 aspects of school-community initiatives about which policymakers and practitioners often ask and presents summary profiles of the 20 initiatives. Part 3, "Strengthening Schools and Sustaining Innovations," broadens the focus of the study from a descriptive analysis of school-community initiatives to consideration of their impact on the quality of education and their long-term staying power and expansion. School-community initiatives contribute to school improvement by fostering positive relations with staff, developing parent participation and leadership, and ensuring access to the school's decision-making process. The sustainability of school-community initiatives depends on stable leadership and permanent financing strategies, as well as diversified funding, careful site selection, visibility, and organized constituent support. A brief set of recommendations for funders, policymakers, and practitioners is included. Appendix A contains additional information about each initiative and contact information. Six other appendixes discuss particular aspects of the operation of school-community initiatives. (Contains 5 tables, 21 figures, and 21 endnotes.) (SLD)