Service-Learning Community Partner Impact Assessment Report

In the summer of 2017, VCU’s Office of Service-Learning conducted an evaluation of the impact of service-learning on community partner organizations. This assessment aimed to collect actionable feedback from partners and to inform improvements to service-learning courses at VCU that successfully address partners’ concerns. An external researcher conducted phone interviews with a representative sample of 22 community partners. Partners were asked how a specific service-learning course impacted their organization in three areas: organizational capacity, economically, and socially. Partners were also asked about faculty interactions and the likelihood of recommending the service-learning course to other organizations like their own. This report presents the findings of this community partner impact assessment, outlines an assessment model for a three-year continuous improvement cycle, and offers key recommendations and next steps that emerged from this assessment

NEW METHODS REGARDING THE ORGANISATION AND FUNCTIONALITY OF THE BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT IN THE VIRTUAL ECONOMY

Globalization represents the destiny humankind is drawing near, everybody being affected to a larger or smaller extent by its irreversible mechanism.The business environment relies on the expansion of markets globally. Therefore it is achieved the transivirtual enterprise, virtual society, mobile Web applications

Co-Teaching in Today\u27s Schools

Co-teaching in today\u27s schools varies based on the model that schools choose and the teachers providing the support. This literature review examined the wide variety of co-teaching models and established that co-teaching is most effective when the co-teachers share a similar philosophy and are well prepared through efficient planning. It is also necessary for the classroom size to be small enough for teachers to be able to meet with students individually or in small groups. This research focused on how co-teachers view their arrangement and how it has been implemented in the schools in which they teach. Surveys were anonymously sent to teachers in two elementary school settings: one a small suburban school and the other a city school

Open Science principles for accelerating trait-based science across the Tree of Life.

Synthesizing trait observations and knowledge across the Tree of Life remains a grand challenge for biodiversity science. Species traits are widely used in ecological and evolutionary science, and new data and methods have proliferated rapidly. Yet accessing and integrating disparate data sources remains a considerable challenge, slowing progress toward a global synthesis to integrate trait data across organisms. Trait science needs a vision for achieving global integration across all organisms. Here, we outline how the adoption of key Open Science principles-open data, open source and open methods-is transforming trait science, increasing transparency, democratizing access and accelerating global synthesis. To enhance widespread adoption of these principles, we introduce the Open Traits Network (OTN), a global, decentralized community welcoming all researchers and institutions pursuing the collaborative goal of standardizing and integrating trait data across organisms. We demonstrate how adherence to Open Science principles is key to the OTN community and outline five activities that can accelerate the synthesis of trait data across the Tree of Life, thereby facilitating rapid advances to address scientific inquiries and environmental issues. Lessons learned along the path to a global synthesis of trait data will provide a framework for addressing similarly complex data science and informatics challenges

State Opportunities for Reconnecting Young Adults to Education, Skills Training and Employment

"An alarmingly large number of young adults have disconnected from traditional education or skills training pathways, often without obtaining a basic high school credential. The research is clear: the longer a person is without a high school credential or without the skill training necessary for a family-sustaining wage, the more likely that individual will remain in poverty and be a significant consumer of public welfare and social services" (p.1). In addressing this problem, the brief describes the issue, which millions of out-of-school young adults face and which can lead to negative consequences for them as well as society at large; explains several federally authorized programs that impact the reconnection of young adults to education and training; outlines possible state tools for reconnecting young adults to education and skills training; and provides recommendations for state-level engagement

Putting Community First: A Promising Approach to Federal Collaboration for Environmental Improvement: An Evaluation of the Community Action for a Renewed Environment (CARE) Demonstration Program

This report is an independent evaluation of the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Community Action for a Renewed Environment (CARE) Demonstration Program, a community-driven process that uses the best available data to help communities set priorities and take action on their greatest environmental risks. CARE fosters local partnerships that seek participation from business, government, organizations, residents and EPA staff. It also supports a public, transparent planning and implementation process based on collaborative decision-making and shared action.Key FindingsThe National Academy Panel overseeing this effort was impressed by the dedication of the EPA staff to this unique initiative and commended the EPA for its efforts to partner with communities in achieving important long-term and sustainable environmental improvements at the local level. Recommended actions for the CARE Program include: (1) develop and implement a multifaceted information sharing approach; (2) coordinate and refine internal program management activities; and (3) develop a strategic plan and a business plan for CARE

Dental Professionals in Non-Dental Settings

This report focuses on nine oral health innovations seeking to increase access to preventive oral health care in nondental settings. Two additional reports in this series describe the remaining programs that provide care in dental settings and care to young children. The nine innovations described here integrate service delivery and workforce models in order to reduce or eliminate socioeconomic, geographic, and cultural barriers to care. Although the programs are diverse in their approaches as well as in the specific characteristics of the communities they serve, a common factor among them is the implementation of multiple strategies to increase the number of children from low-income families who access preventive care, and also to engage families and communities in investing in and prioritizing oral health. For low-income children and their families, the barriers that must be addressed to increase access to preventive oral health care are numerous. For example, even children covered by public insurance programs face a shortage of dentists that accept Medicaid and who specialize in pediatric dentistry. The effects of poverty intersect with other barriers such as living in remote geographic areas and having a community-wide history of poor access to dental care in populations such as recent immigrants. Overcoming these barriers requires creative strategies that address transportation barriers, establish welcoming environments for oral health care, and are linguistically and culturally relevant. Each of these nine programs is based on such strategies, including:-Expanding the dental workforce through training new types of providers or adding new providers to the workforce toincrease reach and community presence;-Implementing new strategies to increase the cost-effectiveness of care so that more oral health care services are available and accessible;-Providing training and technical assistance that increase opportunities for and competence in delivering oral health education and care to children;-Offering oral health care services in existing, familiar community venues such as schools, Head Start programs and senior centers;-Developing creative service delivery models that address transportation and cultural barriers as well as the fear and stigma associated with dental care that may arise in communities with historically poor access.The findings from the EAs of these programs are synthesized to highlight diverse and innovative strategies for overcoming barriers to access. These strategies have potential for rigorous evaluation and could emerge as best practices. If proven effective, these innovative program elements could then be disseminated and replicated to increase access for populations in need of preventive oral health care