Assessment of the Economic Impact Associated with the Recreational Scallop Season in Hernando County, Florida

Recreational scalloping has become an increasingly popular activity within the Big Bend region of Florida and Hernando County is the southern extent of healthy, harvestable bay scallop populations. A previous study (Stevens, et al, 2003) found that the recreational scallop fishery generated 35 jobs and $1.6 million in economic impact to the economy of neighboring Citrus County in 2003. State resource managers and County administrators expressed a need to know how the recreational scallop season impacts the local economies.

Knowledge of Federal EEO Law Among County Administrators and Department Heads

This article reports the results of a survey designed to assess the extent to which public administrators are knowledgeable of federal Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) law. Findings suggest that there is significant variation among county administrators and department heads in their levels of knowledge, and that they are more familiar with Title VII of the Civil Rights Acts of 1964 than they are with other laws examined. Those who have had employment law training, who hold a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree, and who serve as human resources directors are more knowledgeable than others. Female administrators are more knowledgeable in some aspects of the law than their male counterparts.

Economic Impact of the Arts in a Small US County

This paper presents an assessment of the economic influence of the arts in a small county in the USA. The arts in this community consist of university, non-profit and private-sector employers and individual artists. A discussion of the methodology used to estimate the impact is provided. Over one thousand arts patrons and 62 artists and arts organizations responded to the survey. The direct and indirect economic impact of the arts in the community was estimated to be US$24 million. Normative prescriptions are offered for arts and county administrators.

Evaluating the Effectiveness of Student Assistance Programs in Pennsylvania

This article presents data from an evaluation of the Pennsylvania Student Assistance Program (SAP). Focusing on both program process and effectiveness, the evaluation was conducted to determine the overall efficacy of SAPs in Pennsylvania and, more specifically, how SAP is currently being implemented. Five data collection strategies were employed: statewide surveys of SAP team members and county administrators, focus groups, site visits, and the Pennsylvania Department of Education SAP Database. A total of 1204 individual team members from 154 school buildings completed the team member survey. Fifty-three county administrators completed the county administrator survey. Focus groups were comprised of SAP coordinators, school board personnel and community agency staff. Site visits were conducted at five schools. The findings of the evaluation indicate that SAP in Pennsylvania is being implemented as designed. Recommended is the development of benchmarks and indicators that focus on the best SAP practices and the extent to which various indicators of the effectiveness of SAP are occurring at appropriate levels.