Thesis
COMMUNITY SCHOOLS:
PLANNING SPACE FOR DEMOCRACY AND
CIVIC ENGAGEMENT
A Thesis Presented
for the
Master of Science in Planning Degree
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Jamey L. Dobbs
May 2001
Dedication
I dedicate this thesis to my daughters,
Jessica and Caitlin, who have inspired me to achieve miraculous things.
Let this thesis remind you that miracles are within your reach, too.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank my major professor, Professor Annette Anderson, for her patient attention to detail, mentoring, inspiration, and partnership. I am also very grateful to my committee members, Dr. Virginia Seitz and Dr. Bruce Tonn for their valuable insight, ready assistance, and standards of excellence. I would also like to thank Dr. Charles Minkel, for his critical support of my research. Additional thanks goes to Nancy Loftis for her support over the years.
I am most grateful to the community school agencies for giving so much to this research. Thanks goes to Debi Jordan and the staff of Bowling Green-Warren County Community Education and to Dr. Don Butler; to Peggy Sparks, Otis Dismuke, and the staff of Birmingham Community Education; and to Alice Keene and the staff of Pitt County Community Schools and Recreation.
Other contributions I would like to recognize came from Stephen Bingler, Bobbie Hill, Bob Ritchey, Dr. Bob Kronick, Dr. Joy Dryfoos, Suzanne Rogers, Dr. Paul Kelley, Dr. Mary Lou Kanipe, Persides Zambrano, Betty Jo Norman-Iskra, and Dr. John Hurst, who turned on the lights.
My love, honor, and thanks go to my husband, Gary McCracken, for joining me on this adventure and making my dream of a graduate degree come true. I also thank my step-daughters, Reba and Sally McCracken, for their patience and good spirits. Finally, I want to thank my parents, Jerry and Diane Dobbs, for standing beside me
PLANNING SPACE FOR DEMOCRACY AND
CIVIC ENGAGEMENT
A Thesis Presented
for the
Master of Science in Planning Degree
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Jamey L. Dobbs
May 2001
Dedication
I dedicate this thesis to my daughters,
Jessica and Caitlin, who have inspired me to achieve miraculous things.
Let this thesis remind you that miracles are within your reach, too.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank my major professor, Professor Annette Anderson, for her patient attention to detail, mentoring, inspiration, and partnership. I am also very grateful to my committee members, Dr. Virginia Seitz and Dr. Bruce Tonn for their valuable insight, ready assistance, and standards of excellence. I would also like to thank Dr. Charles Minkel, for his critical support of my research. Additional thanks goes to Nancy Loftis for her support over the years.
I am most grateful to the community school agencies for giving so much to this research. Thanks goes to Debi Jordan and the staff of Bowling Green-Warren County Community Education and to Dr. Don Butler; to Peggy Sparks, Otis Dismuke, and the staff of Birmingham Community Education; and to Alice Keene and the staff of Pitt County Community Schools and Recreation.
Other contributions I would like to recognize came from Stephen Bingler, Bobbie Hill, Bob Ritchey, Dr. Bob Kronick, Dr. Joy Dryfoos, Suzanne Rogers, Dr. Paul Kelley, Dr. Mary Lou Kanipe, Persides Zambrano, Betty Jo Norman-Iskra, and Dr. John Hurst, who turned on the lights.
My love, honor, and thanks go to my husband, Gary McCracken, for joining me on this adventure and making my dream of a graduate degree come true. I also thank my step-daughters, Reba and Sally McCracken, for their patience and good spirits. Finally, I want to thank my parents, Jerry and Diane Dobbs, for standing beside me
References: 2. Bowling Green-Warren County Community Education. (n.d.). [brochure]. Received on May 18, 2000. 2. Neighborhood Mastery Development: Course I. (May 16, 2000). [training manual]. 2. Community Education Advisory Councils: People, Partners, and Progress. [event program, 1997 Community Education Advisory Council dinner, The Harbert Center, March 19, 1997]. 2. Neighborhood Conference, 1999. (1999, May 21-22). [conference program]. 3. Neighborhood Associations: The Building Blocks of Birmingham. (n.d.). Received June 8, 2000. [brochure]. 4. A Brief History of Citizen Participation in Birmingham, 1972-1988. (n.d.). [unpublished report on program history]. 2. Pitt County Community Schools and Recreation. (1998-1999; 1999-2000). [brochures]. 3. Program Report: Reaching Out to Serve and Connect the Community for 20 Years Since 1978. (1998). [annual report]. 4. Pitt County Community Schools and Recreation. (n.d.). [program report]. Received on August 25, 2000. 5. Pitt County Community Schools and Recreation: Presentation for the Pitt County Board of Commissioners. (n.d.). [unpublished presentation notes]. Received on August 25, 2000. 6. Database printout of program activities from July 1999-June 2000. Printed on August 24, 2000. Site Visits and Interviews Conducted Bowling Green/Warren County, Kentucky: May 18-19, 2000 Dr. John Settles, Superintendent, Bowling Green City Schools Birmingham, Alabama: June 8-9, 2000 Pitt County/Greenville North Carolina: August 24-25, 2000 Mary Alsenzer, former President, League of Women Voters Bingler, Stephen, President, Concordia Planning and Architecture, Inc. Interviewed October 30, 2000 at the Coalition for Community Schools National Conference, Kansas City, MO. Nielsen, Randall, Public Education Program Director, Kettering Foundation, Dayton, OH Interviewed by telephone on June 15, 2000. Ritchey, Robert Jr., Education Specialist, State of Alabama, Department of Education, Adult and Community Education Program, Team 2, Capital Planning, Montgomery, Alabama. Interviewed by telephone on October 15, 2000.