1) A community is a bunch of people who have something in common.
2) An ideal community supports diversity & individuality.
3) Social change requires community participation.
4) The primary goals of community development are prosperity and job creation.
5) Communities are best understood holistically.
6) Community is a universal human value.
7) Community is more important than individualism.
8) The primary goals of community development are community vitality & well-being.
9) Community can be studied scientifically.
10) Community social science research requires community participation.
11) Economic development and community vitality have inconsistent goals and priorities.
12) A direct path to community change is to educate community policymakers, especially elected officials.
13) Every health, human service or public service program contributes in its own way to community development.
14) Everyone should be involved in and contribute to their community, including university employees.
15) Economic development and community vitality are interdependent and pursue mutually supportive goals.
16) Rhetoric about "community" can be used as a marketing ploy for "devolution" and regressive tax policies.
17) The university should be engaged with the community.
Eric Lerner, Ph.D.
Community & Organizational Development
504 South Plain Street
Ithaca, NY 14850
(607) 273-1154
elerner@twcny.rr.com.
Page updated September 5, 2001
