Ernest O. Melby Community
Education Center
The Ernest O. Melby Community Education Center at FAU was founded in 1967
with a grant from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. On February 12,
1988, the Center was formally named in honor of Ernest O. Melby.
During its history, the Center has played an important role
in the development of creative and innovative solutions to many of the
issues and problems that face communities. This role has been accomplished
through the sponsorship of conferences and workshops, graduate courses,
provision of consultant services, facilitation of interagency efforts,
and the development and distribution of printed material.
The continuing need for more intensive and substantive efforts in addressing
community problems impeding the educational attainment of large segments
of the Florida population are described in The Florida Community Education
State Plan and in Florida's Blueprint 2000. The Center will
play an active role in helping to address the issues that are dramatically
impacting Florida and its respective communities, especially in the areas
of:
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Youth At Risk.
The danger of violence, crime, poverty, and poor health confront our youth
with crucial decisions that may determine the entire course of their futures.
Intervention and support at these critical times can help tip the balance
in favor of success.
-
School-Age Child Care.
The dilemma of latchkey children is being resolved with child care at the
school site for school-age youngsters, enabling parents to participate
in the workforce knowing that their children are in a safe, healthy, and
educational environment.
-
Crime. Community
agencies and organizations are collaborating to develop crime prevention
strategies, neighborhood crime watch groups, safety seminars, and task
forces addressing specific crime-related activities.
-
Health. The
bringing together of agencies, resources, and people to design health-related
programs and services that will enable Floridians to lead more healthy
lives, and allow more efficient service delivery.
-
Growth. Citizen
awareness is vital to developing solutions for the problems resulting from
rapid population growth. Involving concerned citizens in the decision-making
process enables agencies to chart the course now for developments to come.
-
Graying of Florida.
Issues
related to the autumn years are addressed by providing programs, activities,
and services that encourage the elderly to have a future as well as a past.
-
Education.
Educational programs address literacy, readiness to begin school, multicultural
understanding, and limited English proficiency to assure all Floridians
a more productive and culturally rich life.
-
Interagency Cooperation.
Organizations
and agencies that operate for the public good can use their limited resources,
meet their own goals, and better serve the public by establishing close
working relationships with other organizations with related purposes. The
resulting cooperation produces a synergy greater than the sum of its parts.
For information about the Ernest O. Melby Community Education Center, contact:
Larry E. Decker, Director
Ernest O. Melby Community Education Center
College of Education, Room 251
Florida Atlantic University
777 Glades Road Boca Raton, FL 33431
Phone: 561-297-3599
Fax: 561-297-3618
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