This book is about children who are living dangerously close to the edge, the edge of delinquency, mental illness, and poverty. Beginning with a discussion of the role of Joy Dryfoos in the development of comprehensive schools, this work is based on the Full Service Schools program which began in 1998 in three elementary inner-city schools in Knoxville, Tennessee. Chapter topics include culture and self-efficacy, the Appalachian Experience, a system?s view of full service community schools, juvenile justice and the rights of children, serving the public in inner-city schools with pragmatic ways to improve low performance, the phenomenology of events covering 2000-2004, student contributions, and effective teacher preparation that meets the needs of the whole child and the family. The team that manages the full service school project is composed of principals, university faculty and students, and community agency personnel. Ministers from neighborhood churches have served on an ad hoc basis as well as parents from the neighborhood. The long-term goal is to have a solid base of community involvement that is needed to support a child's success in school and the community and to make certain that every child in crisis is viewed and treated as an individual. This book is about people who are devoted to helping children and their families. This comprehensive and insightful book will be valuable to school administrators, private child care workers, family resource and youth service center coordinators, alternative educators, and others that are concerned with improving educational quality. Following a foreword and an introduction, this book is divided into the following eight chapters: (1) The Role of Joy Dryfoos in the Development of Comprehensive Schools; (2) Culture and Self Efficacy: The Appalachian Experience; (3) Full Service Community Schools: A System's View; (4) Juvenile Justice--The Rights of Children: Fact, Fiction, or Fantasy; (5) Serving the Public in Is: Ways to Improve Low Performance; (6) The Phenomenology of Events 2000-2004: Where Goest Full Service Community Schools?; (7) Student Contributions--Paulson, Youngblood, Gourley, Catalana, and Nachtrab; and (8) Effective Teacher Preparation Must Include the Needs of the Whole Child and the Family (Dr. Cheryl Kershaw). Appended is: Organizational Health Inventory--Middle Level. A list of references and an index are also included.