This is an assessment of the reluctance of American education institutions to undergo change and reform at a time when it is considered necessary. The lack of public confidence in educational institutions is discussed along with the subsequent consequences.

Comprises three sections: emerging models for connecting community services reform; the impact of school- and community-based interventions and children's learning and development; and state and federal policies for building partnerships to improve outcomes for children and families.

*How should education be organized in pluralistic and multicultural societies?*What are the roles in education of civil society, markets, governments, and the family?*How can the idea of the civil society help to reorient education policy discussions that are sometimes stuck in either-or juxtapositions of "market versus government" or "individualism versus communitarianism?"*What are some of the traditions of civil society--across countries and across history--that edu...