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While grassroots and student activism surrounding the first Earth Day in 1970 played a role in fostering environmental studies programs around the country, this dissertation narrates the untold story of other forces that served as crucial catalysts. Established conservation education models, the dynamics of college and university funding, and the political economy of outdoor recreation all played essential roles. The downplaying of these forces in historical narratives has contributed to a paradox facing environmental educators: how to pursue the profound transformation of American society while simultaneously working within established political economies to keep institutions financially solvent. When this paradox is ignored or misunderstood, it can lead to superficial solutions and ideological polarization that reflects broader American environmental politics. It can also lead to students who feel a deep sense of frustration, confusion, or desolation about their moral or spiritual lives and their role in addressing environmental problems. A fundamental set of forces intensifying these problems are the norms and structures of higher education that privilege not only the specialization of academic disciplines but the segregation of intellectual learning from social, moral, and spiritual education. Sophisticated environmental education will require the navigation of another paradox: maintaining the strengths of specialized expertise while avoiding a fractured educational experience for students. To achieve this, colleges must foster a culture of mutual learning and healthy vulnerability between teachers and students, integrate learning inside and outside the classroom, and engage in honest assessments of institutional history and political economy. These findings are based on research at a series of college and university campuses, with a focus on three primary case studies: the University of Wisconsin-Madison, a large public research university with a long and rich tradition of conservation education dating back to the early 20th century; Northland College, a small liberal arts college in northern Wisconsin, which put environmental education at the center of its mission and identity beginning in 1970; and Hope College, a small liberal arts college in Michigan with the curious mix of a longstanding and vibrant evangelical Christian culture and environmental education and sustainability programs. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

Education can have a tremendous impact on how we, as humans, understand and relate to each other and the larger environmental systems to which we belong. In efforts to address the role of education in alleviating and eliminating social suffering and environmental degradation in many of the worlds' diverse communities, the purpose of this critical ethnographic case study is to qualitatively examine the design of an intermediary organization within the context of eco-democratic reform. The study involved observation, interviewing, and analysis that included personal narrative accounts from 12 key members in the organization and their thick descriptions of the design and function of the Southeast Michigan Stewardship Coalition (SEMIS). The study explores new territories for community-based collaborations and examines the complexity of such initiatives, while focusing on professional development and adult learning framed by an EcoJustice Education approach to place-based education. The study illustrates the identity of SEMIS as a learning organization with a strong commitment to designing and providing sustained professional development in the region. The "deep" design of SEMIS offers insight into the structure and the complexity of the networks of learning relationships in this intermediary organization. Major contributions from this case study include a) an organizational history of SEMIS; b) an articulation and analysis of the SEMIS sustained professional development; and c) a unique learning model for the development of an eco-ethical consciousness. The study presents the examination and analysis of a unique intermediary organization in the context of eco-democratic reform and illustrates both the design and the complex approach to the work in SEMIS. The study provides insight into the complexity of partnerships between universities, community organizations, schools, and teachers in the context of a paradigm shifting espoused theoretical framework. The information in this study can provide insight for other organizations as well as a base for future research to understand EcoJustice Education, place-based education, and teacher learning in the context of eco-democratic reform. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]

The purpose of this dissertation was to examine the events which developed in Kalamazoo, Michigan and Evanston, Illinois during the transitional period in which the public schools in each community moved from segregated to desegregated systems. One of the school districts resisted desegregation and was forced with a court order to desegregate its public schools. The other school district implemented a desegregation plan voluntarily, without a court order. The study also considered the opinions and perceptions of school people and community leaders as to the advantages and disadvantages of voluntarily implementing a desegregation plan without a court order. The study is historical in nature and is restricted to the periods representing the first five years of desegregation in these communities. Extensive personal interviews were conducted in both communities. Based upon the findings, the following conclusions were put forth: (1) according to the majority of persons interviewed in each community, the implementation of a voluntary desegregation plan has more advantages than disadvantages for local school systems, (2) under a voluntary plan, control and ultimate decision-making power can remain with the legally elected authority, namely the board of education, (3) school boards that resort to litigation in continuing to resist desegregation are certain to remain under court supervision for a long period of time lessening their discretion to make certain kinds of decisions, and (4) firm support from political groups, civic groups, churches, and the press is essential to carrying out a successful desegregation plan. (Author/AM)