“We should be addressing whiteness less, and affirming blackness more”: Random Acts of Flyness, Afrosurrealism, and Quality Programming

Premiering on Saturday nights in summer of 2018, the barely-promoted Random Acts of Flyness (RAOF) was buried in HBO’s schedule. The highly experimental series combines many forms, including late night talk show, documentary, claymation, and sketch show, amongst many others. With stylistic techniques such as Afrosurrealism and self-reflexivity alongside discursive tools that heighten the series’ claim to “quality,” I argue that RAOF utilizes its surreal and distinctly black creative production to critically examine representations of blackness and whiteness in the media and American culture. I further contend that, for HBO, independent filmmaker and series creator Terence Nance’s pedigree fits the channel’s long-standing association with “higher” art forms, even as the series does not fit into historically white and affluent notions of “quality.” As the television landscape becomes broader and markers of “quality” become harder to pin down, the series’ incisive look at blackness proves to be an exceptional case study.

Sustaining collaborative preschool partnerships and the challenges of educating the whole child

Introduction Our study examined whole-child preschool programming from a policy perspective. We suggest that whole-child wellness must include sustainable approaches that are systematic and holistic approaches for educating children. The Preschool Partnership Grant was a means of funding preschool districts, who successfully applied for the grant across our state to initiate, continue, and sustain quality programming with their respective local preschool partners. Funding also enabled districts to increase access to quality programming while fostering kindergarten readiness in participating children. Case description We conducted a case study by analyzing data provided by district Preschool Partnership Grantees. Data included quantitative measures of district and partner preschools and open-ended items describing professional development opportunities, holistic interventions, and effective preschool activities afforded by grant funding. Results Grant recipients (n = 79) reported that they engaged in a number of different public and private partnerships. They reported being able to serve more children due to grant funding, and gave a variety of reasons for serving more children, with improved collaboration being the most reported reason. District grantees also indicated increased consultation, intervention services, and professional development opportunities through grant funding. Finally, they reported on key challenges they faced during the grant period. Discussion and evaluation Data suggested that school districts recognized the importance of collaboration, trust, and relationship building among districts, partners, and families. Descriptive data indicated the importance of sustaining quality programming during the grant period. Districts also clearly voiced their appreciation of the importance of relationships and collaboration among key stakeholders who touched the lives of children enrolled in the grantee districts. Conclusions Our study suggests that early childhood policy should enable systematic and sustainable partnerships that approach preschool programming from a holistic perspective.

Portable Screen Time and Kindergarteners’ Attention with Content as a Potential Moderator

Portable screens such as smart phones and tablets are a normal part of children’s everyday lives, yet excessive media use presents a multitude of health and developmental concerns. Specifically, the impact of portable screen time on children’s attention is unknown, and screen time could potentially result in negative outcomes including poor school readiness and social difficulties. The purpose of this study was to assess the relationship between portable screen time and kindergarteners’ attention (the first research question), and to investigate learning content as a potential moderator (the second research question). Data were collected using the Preschool and Kindergarten Behaviors Scale, 2nd Edition attention subscales and questionnaires on portable screen time and content, and analyzed via hierarchical multiple regression. Results included a significant relationship between screen time and attention, where, as screen time increased, attention decreased, and insignificant findings for a moderating relationship between screen time and content on attention. It was recommended that adults monitor children’s portable screen time to ensure attention is not compromised, and that screen time be utilized for educational purposes using quality programming. Recommendations for future research include studies which address portable screen time and learning content, structure/pacing, interactivity, and context of children’s screen time.

Current Priorities in Campus Recreation: A Multi-Institutional Study of Strategic Plans

Strategic planning is a proactive process of analyzing an organization to identify the organization’s values, mission, vision, goals, and objectives. Within campus recreation, research has focused on the processes of strategic planning, without examining the distinct organizational strategies of individual departments. The purpose of the study was to examine the content and structure of strategic plans within campus recreation and identify major priorities across institutions as a means to inform campus recreation practice. To achieve this aim, document analyses were conducted on campus recreation strategic plans of five large universities (public and private) across the United States for content and structure. The data were categorized by prominent strategic planning components outlined in Haines’s campus recreation assessment model, from which codes and themes emerged. A standard of excellence, service, and outcomes were identified as major priorities across institutions and strategic planning components. The results demonstrated an ineffective structure of goals and objectives, highlighting areas for improvement. Through empirical investigation, industry standards can be established to enhance quality programming in campus recreation.

RE-EXAMINING & REPOSITIONING HIGHER EDUCATION: TWENTY ECONOMIC AND DEMOGRAPHIC FACTORS DRIVING ONLINE AND BLENDED PROGRAM ENROLLMENTS

Economic and demographic shifts in the United State are transforming higher education. With substantial reductions in state funding, increasing campus energy and operational costs, endowments generating reduced returns, and a national economic readjustment of unprecedented proportions, higher education must re-examine and reposition itself to meet new and emerging challenges. This paper identifies ten economic factors and ten demographic factors that are confronting colleges and universities and driving online and blended program enrollments. While traditional face-to-face programs will always play a critical role in higher education, online and blended programs provide new opportunities to expand current student markets by offering quality programming that supports the institutional mission, increases brand recognition, and expands an institution’s alumni base.

Undergraduate Rehabilitation Education Programs: A Focus on Quality and Ethics as Guiding Principles in Preparing Students for a Diverse Workforce

In the post Council on Rehabilitation Education (CORE) era, many undergraduate rehabilitation programs find themselves in a predicament with unanswered questions about the future as it relates to ethical and quality programming. In this conceptual manuscript, the authors discuss the direction of undergraduate programs in light of the (July 1, 2017) CORE/CACREP merger. The manuscript provides functional definitions of quality and explores the ethical obligations of undergraduate rehabilitation education programs and faculty. The authors describe how quality and ethics serve as the basis for preparing undergraduate rehabilitation education students for employment. The manuscript also provides implications, strategies, and recommendations for future research that are directed at developing and maintaining quality undergraduate rehabilitation programs.

Special Issue: Perspectives on the Value of the Camp Experience

This special issue brings attention to a broad range of current research that explored the varied contributions of the camp experience to positive youth development. The camp experience described in these articles included many types of programs (e.g., nature-based, sports, arts), duration (e.g., day/overnight, multi-day/multi-week), settings (e.g., wilderness, public and private natural areas), and audiences (e.g., urban/rural, children with medical needs, low income). The articles addressed topics such as 21st century skill development through camp, developmental outcomes related to career/college readiness and life success for campers and staff, developmental values of camp for specialized audiences such as medically-oriented campers, leadership development in young staff, relationship of quality programming to youth development, and relationships between nature-based experiences and youth development. All of the articles offer practical implications and applications for practice as well as contribute to theory and the body of knowledge. As with all good research, this special issue leaves the reader with new information but also identifies relevant questions for future research and evaluation.