IS YOUR COMMUNITY A GLASS HALF FULL, OR HALF EMPTY? In Building Communities from the Inside Out: A Path Toward Finding and Mobilizing a Community's Assets (Center for Urban Affairs and Policy Research, Northwestern University, 1993), authors John P. Kretzmann and John L. McKnight share their optimistic bias. Every community, they assert, is a place filled with talents and gifts. You just have to know where to look to find your community's strengths.

The authors focus primarily on developing the local capacity in urban areas, particularly in inner cities where middle-income manufacturing jobs have been lost in recent decades. If local residents are lacking education and job skills, they may feel powerless, the authors acknowledge. Kretzmann and McKnight illustrate how change is possible if residents are willing to join in the struggle to rebuild "from the inside out." Local residents, local associations, and local institutions are the foundations for building lasting change.

Kretzmann and McKnight use an accessible style to explain research-based concepts about community building. They show why a more traditional approach has left many poor communities feeling "needy," with residents typically reduced to the status of clients awaiting services from outside experts. They make a convincing case for why this approach has led to fragmented services and a lack of connection at the local level. Rather than looking at a community in terms of its needs, they suggest focusing on local assets: What are the strengths of a place? How can we tap these assets, and build on them, to improve the community? The authors show how to "map" local assets, how to build on existing relationships, and how to release the power of individuals, associations, and organizations to become more active contributors to the life of the community.

The authors go into detail to suggest ways to "release the power" of local associations and organizations. Together with individuals, associations are the basic community-building tools of local neighborhoods. In low-income neighborhoods, however, residents and outsiders often make the mistake of assuming that associations are scarce. Kretz- mann and McKnight offer evidence that suggests even the poorest communities are rich in associations. They describe a lower-income Chicago neighborhood where researchers found more than 150 local associations, ranging from service clubs to merchant groups to neighborhood choirs. How to find existing associations and enlist their support for community building? This workbook outlines an inexpensive and quick research approach: using printed sources (such as newspapers); talking to people at local institutions; and conducting a telephone survey.

The real strength of this book may lie in the hundreds of examples of collaboration sprinkled across the pages: the inner-city church that "adopts" a public school, providing literacy tutoring to students; the artists who work with disabled persons to create a community mural; the elementary school students who collect oral histories from seniors living in a public housing project; the police officers who teach conflict resolution skills to at-risk teens. Those seeking inspiration will discover a wealth of ideas that have worked to rebuild and revive other communities, both large and small.

Building Communities from the Inside Out ($20) is one of several community-building tools available from ACTA Publications, 4848 North Clark Street, Chicago, IL 60640.

WHY DO SOME COLLABORATIONS SUCCEED , while others fizzle? Collaboration: What Makes It Work, A Review of Research Literature on Factors Influencing Successful Collaboration (Amherst H. Wilder Foundation, 1992) sifts through the research to deliver some practical information.

This report, written by Paul W. Mattessich and Barbara R. Monsey, begins with a working definition of collaboration: "a mutually beneficial and well-defined relationship entered into by two or more organizations to achieve common goals." Then, the authors identify and discuss 19 keys to success in collaborations formed by human service, government, and other nonprofit agencies.

For example, they explain why it's important for members of a collaborative group to feel "ownership" of both the way the group works and the results or product of the work. They look at the factors related to communication, such as how often members communicate and how well information flows. They explain the wisdom of partners investing time to get better acquainted.

The authors also discuss how to use these 19 factors at different stages along the way to building a successful collaboration. During the planning stages, the factors provide a checklist. Is your collaboration building in the factors that will breed success? Can planning steps be taken to improve? Once a collaborative effort is underway, the factors can be useful for making midcourse changes or adjustments.

Collaboration: What Makes It Work costs $14 and can be ordered from Amherst H. Wilder Foundation Publishing Center, 919 Lafond Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55104, or by phone, 1-800-274-6024.

WHAT WILL OUR RURAL COMMUNITY LOOK LIKE IN FIVE YEARS? That's a question that citizens in small towns all across the country are asking one another. Finding Their Own Place (ERIC Clearinghouse on Rural Education and Small Schools, 1997), by Bruce A. Miller and Karen J. Hahn, suggests that it might be wise to ask the same question of young rural people.

Finding Their Own Place describes the experiences of three small towns in the Northwest-Broadus and Saco, Montana, and Methow Valley, Washington. All three operate successful school-to-work programs that involve youth in the life of their communities. Their stories challenge the notion that rural youth lack opportunities for meaningful learning experiences close to home. They also illustrate how the energy and vitality of young people can advance community development.

The case studies describe economic hardships that many rural communities face, yet also celebrate the innovation of people at home in remote and isolated places. In Saco, Montana, for instance, a community of about 250 people, children in grades K-12 routinely use an electronic network, and teachers tap resources via satellite downlink.

As the authors report, "some rural communities have turned the seemingly impossible into success stories for youth and their communities. They have capitalized on their local strengths -small size, sense of community, pride of place."

The book costs $12 and can be ordered by phone, 1-800-624-9120.

POWERFUL SCHOOLS, A COLLABORATIVE SCHOOL IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM serving a low-income Seattle neighborhood, has an established track record as a model that works to uplift student achievement and strengthen bonds between community and school (see Page 24). Powerful Schools Handbook: Starting and Running a Collaborative School Improvement Program (Court Street Press, 1995) shares the nuts and bolts of how this program really functions. The workbook outlines every step, from getting a project off the ground to finding a steady flow of funds and sufficient number of volunteers to keep it running smoothly.

Specific programs are described in detail, such as one-on-one mentoring, community schools, and parent involvement programs. Written by staff and volunteers from Powerful Schools, the contents mix longer, how-to articles with short tips and specific suggestions.

In the spirit of sharing, the book concludes with examples of forms and brochures that can easily be adapted to fit other programs. These examples take the guesswork out of designing an evaluation form, a job description, or a brochure to recruit volunteers.

Powerful Schools Handbook can be ordered for $19.95 plus $2 for handling from Powerful Schools, 3301 S. Horton Street, Seattle, WA 98144.

RURAL EDUCATION SPECIALISTS FROM THE NORTHWEST LABORATORY have been engaged in a long-term project to develop the local capacity in five pilot sites across the Northwest. The lessons learned in these real-world applications are highlighted in a series of workbooks, Strengthening Community Education: The Basis for Sustainable Community Renewal. The first two books in a series of four are now available.

Building Partnerships Workbook by Diane Dorfman (NWREL, 1998) is a hands-on guide to launching a collaborative community development project. The book introduces basic concepts about communities, focusing indepth on the importance of relationships within a geographic setting. The interactive approach engages readers to list their own relationships and examine which bonds forge a sense of community.

Dorfman applies community-building concepts specifically to rural places, pointing out the challenges, but also the strengths, of rural communities. She stresses the significance of the school in rural locales to explain why school-community collaborations benefit all ages.

This is a book intended to be used. The pages invite readers to write down their thoughts. The concepts lead naturally to conversations between friends and neighbors. And through lively, focused dialogue, the book explains, the real work of building community takes place.

Mapping Community Assets Workbook by Diane Dorfman (NWREL, 1998) takes readers step-by-step through the process of identifying strengths in their communities. The book begins on a personal level, asking readers to list their own assets-not only tangible goods, but also the relationships that enhance their lives. Then, the lens opens up to take stock of the assets of the community, with whatever is most special about the place at the center of the "asset map." Readers learn how to design a questionnaire to find the assets scattered throughout their community and bring them into the open, for everyone's benefit.

Copies of the workbooks are available from NWREL, (503) 275-9519 or 1-800-547-6339, ext. 519. Building Partnerships costs $12.80, Mapping Community Assets costs $10.30.