Abstract
Purpose. The purpose of this study was to describe and compare perceptions of project directors, principals, and site coordinators regarding characteristics of collaboration exhibited between school-day and after-school personnel in rural, elementary, educational, 21st Century Learning Center programs in Healthy Start Regions three through seven in California, as measured by a twenty-five-item survey developed for this purpose. Methodology. This descriptive study included eleven project directors, ten principals, and eleven site coordinators from rural, elementary, educational, 21st Century Community Learning Centers in cohorts three through six and from Healthy Start Regions three through seven. Survey data from completed six-point Likert scale surveys were used to calculate descriptive statistics and to analyze and generate frequency tables. Findings. There were no significant differences in perceptions between project directors, principals, and site coordinators. Site coordinators had a greater positive response rate than did principals or project directors. Both project directors and principals felt there was not adequate time taken following key decisions to develop follow-up plans or to plan strategically together to meet the needs of the students in the program. Conclusions. The development of common ground rules is a strength for school-day and after-school personnel according to project directors, principals, and site coordinators (Parson 1999; Walter, Caplan, and McElvain 2000; Jordan et al. 2001). "Lack of time" (Chung 2000, 13), when additional time would allow school-day and after-school personnel to plan to meet the needs of students and make key decisions, was a weakness. Recommendations. Use this study as a beginning for further investigation related to individual components of collaboration and to compare findings of other after-school programs. Time is needed for implementation of key decisions and for school-day and after-school personnel to plan together to meet student needs.