Purpose and Background: The following is a summary of the outcomes of the sustainability meetings conducted by the Community Discovered Project during the Summer and Fall of 1997. The meetings were to identify and agree upon a set of common beliefs about the guiding principles and desired outcomes of the project - and to identify strategies for ensuring sustainability and scaleability. The overarching goal for this process was to gain a reaffirmation, among all project partners, to continue collaboration and support for this important initiative based on a shared set of beliefs and strategies for the future.

The Desired Outcomes: In identifying the desired outcomes of the participation in the project by key partners, the following impact statements were developed within the sustainability meetings.

Students will:

• feel successful in executing a higher level of thinking skills and will have the ability to construct knowledge
• more actively engage in and more responsible for learning
• use appropriate language and vocabulary to communicate about their learning

Teachers will:

• incorporate a constructivist approach to their own learning and teaching that serves as an effective "model" of learning for their students
• develop a greater knowledge and understanding of the arts and their integration with other disciplines
• participate as full partners within the Community Discovered project that results in a sense of belonging and empowerment necessary to engage in effective mentoring and collaboration with their peers

Cultural Institutions will:

• expand and/or refocus their education programming to develop teaching tools and resources that are of greater relevance to the constructivist teaching and learning process
• work more closely with teachers in the development of educational opportunities and resources
• refocus and expand their outreach activities to more effectively engage all members of the community in arts and cultural programs and services

Higher Education Institutions will:

• develop strategies for providing resources and services to K-12 teachers and students that enhance the constructivist approach as well as other project cornerstones
• collaborate with cultural institutions and school districts to provide professional development opportunities for teachers as well as distance learning opportunities and on-line resources for students
• increase interactive planning and communications with K-12 schools through technology and other avenues
• identify and link teacher preparation, content areas and instruction with K-12 subject area content taught by Community Discovered project participants

Business Partners will:

• focus resources and strategies to help teachers and students meet project objectives in conjunction with the four cornerstones
• assist with promoting the goals and outcomes of the project as a successful model for strengthening partnerships between the business community and schools
• share human resources by empowering employees to participate in the project where appropriate
• actively collaborate with the project when opportunities are available
• provide feedback to schools when invited to do so
• take part in open communication with the project
• develop Web sites containing relevant information of community interest
• sponsor a Community Discovered statewide awards program

Parents and the Larger Community will:

• better understand and support the goals and beliefs underlying the project's four cornerstones
• increase their participation in and support for project activities
• increase their participation (and the participation of their children) in the community's arts and cultural events and opportunities

The Nebraska Department of Education will:

• assist all project partners to understand how the Community Discovered project is consonant with new approaches to teaching and learning in the state and nationally

The Belief Statements:

In identifying the shared beliefs of partners in the project, the following belief statements were developed within the meetings. These belief statements will be used to help guide the project in all project developed activities and general planning.

1. We believe that to teach and learn through the visual and performing arts:

• promotes greater understanding of the human experience
• integrates and transcends subjects and disciplines
• is an essential part of the core education program for all students
• fosters creative and critical thinking, self-discipline, and lifelong learning
• helps people understand and celebrate themselves and others in a community without boundaries
• provides a powerful means for self-expression and communication among individuals, generations, and cultures
• includes dance, music, theater, and the visual arts
• encompasses process, performance/production, criticism and aesthetics, including historical and culturally diverse populations

1. We believe that to teach and learn from an interdisciplinary approach, educators should be encouraged to:

• make the world relevant by interconnecting and interrelating a variety of disciplines and learning
• offer multiple lenses from which to view the world of knowledge
• construct a complex but meaningful knowledge base that accommodates diverse viewpoints for managing life's problems and issues
• preserve the integrity of the disciplines

1. We believe that to teach and learn from a constructivist framework means:

• through inquiry, exploration, and discovery, students will acquire basic skills and higher-order thinking skills, construct meaning, and open corridors to new fields of inquiry and knowledge
• teachers and students will develop an active partnership and collaboration that is dedicated to learning in and beyond the classroom

d) We believe that teaching and learning through the application and integration of technology:

• adds a dimension to learning, with its own unique skill set
• empowers teachers and students to move forward creatively
• provides equality and freedom of discovery
• fosters the responsibility to stay on course
• enables wide-ranging inquiry-based educational travels
• promotes global interactive relationships for research, sharing, creating and assessing
• requires continuing maintenance, fine-tuning, and investment
• supports the mission of education reform for transforming teaching and learning to prepare students for the 21^st century

The Tools and Resources for Sustainability:

The meetings also identified five different categories of tools and resources to aid in the sustainability process, which were acknowledged by the participants:

1. Mixes of Community-based Partners

2. Well-defined Roles and Responsibilities of Partners

3. Teacher and Administrator Empowerments

4. Professional Development for All Partners

5. Interactive Communications Opportunities

For additional information:

For additional information related to this report, or the Community Discovered Project itself and the Office of Internet Studies, related to the evaluation process, the following two web sites will be useful.

The Community Discovered: http://communitydisc.wst.esu3.k12.ne.us

The Office of Internet Studies: http://ois.unomaha.edu