Originally published in 1971. On May 4th, 1970, shots fired by the Ohio National Guard at Kent State University were heard around the world. People were either outraged by the killings or outraged at the students. Instant experts rendered the judgment that it was all a problem of communication. This book tested that hypothesis as it presents the result of an in-depth series of interviews both within and outside the university soon after the tragic event. The book includes a narrative of an initial understanding of the incidents but admits its limit in full information as it outlines the results of the study, which looked at systems and subsystems of information flow. This book adds to the understanding of problems of communication in large organisations and particularly education establishments as well as being a cautionary tale of a specific event.

Originally published in 1971. On May 4th, 1970, shots fired by the Ohio National Guard at Kent State University were heard around the world. People were either outraged by the killings or outraged at the students. Instant experts rendered the judgment that it was all a problem of communication. This book tested that hypothesis as it presents the result of an in-depth series of interviews both within and outside the university soon after the tragic event. The book includes a narrative of an initial understanding of the incidents but admits its limit in full information as it outlines the results of the study, which looked at systems and subsystems of information flow. This book adds to the understanding of problems of communication in large organisations and particularly education establishments as well as being a cautionary tale of a specific event.

"Who Is My Neighbor?" is a compelling account of the author s ten-year journey as a volunteer at the St. Francis Center, a homeless shelter in Denver, Colorado. A retired Professor of Communication, Phil Tompkins marshals his considerable experience as a participant observer in recording the voices of the guests of the shelter as they teach us about their situation. We learn about their hopes for regaining a home and their fears as they are victimized in some cases even murdered. Tompkins shows how effective communication and organization can contribute to finding an end to homelessness and establishing a movement toward protective action, especially when a proactive local government gets involved. In addition to giving voice to homeless people, "Who Is My Neighbor?" explores Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper s ambitious Commission to End Homelessness. This remarkable social experiment, now called Denver s Road Home, is two years into implementing an innovative plan for ending homelessness. It provides a model for other cities nationwide where persistent homelessness has defied resolution. "Features of this unique book: Includes poignant stories of and interviews with homeless people from every background.Recounts the era of the brutal decapitation murders among Denver s homeless population.Author s first hand experience with and scholarly understanding of the homeless is reflected throughout.Shows the ways that businesses, nonprofits, and local, state, and the federal levels of government can work together to eliminate homelessness.Puts forth the radical proposals of Denver s Road Home ending homelessness by providing homes for people without them."Additional online resources to learn more about homelessness Colorado Coalition for the Homeless, www.coloradocoalition.orgCommunity for Creative Nonviolence, http: //users.erols.com/ccnv/ Corporation for Supportive Housing, www.csh.orgDenver s Road Home, www.denversroadhome.orgEveryone Deserves A Roof, www.edar.orgGood Samaritan Society, www.good-sam.comHousing Justice , www.housingjustice.orgNational Alliance to End Homelessness, www.endhomelessness.orgNational Coalition for Homeless Veterans, www.ncvh.orgNational Coalition for the Homeless, www.nationalhomeless.orgNational Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, www.nlchp.orgThe St. Francis Center, www.sfcdenver.orgUnited States Interagency Council on Homelessness, www.usich.gov"

"Who Is My Neighbor?" is a compelling account of the author s ten-year journey as a volunteer at the St. Francis Center, a homeless shelter in Denver, Colorado. A retired Professor of Communication, Phil Tompkins marshals his considerable experience as a participant observer in recording the voices of the guests of the shelter as they teach us about their situation. We learn about their hopes for regaining a home and their fears as they are victimized in some cases even murdered. Tompkins shows how effective communication and organization can contribute to finding an end to homelessness and establishing a movement toward protective action, especially when a proactive local government gets involved. In addition to giving voice to homeless people, "Who Is My Neighbor?" explores Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper s ambitious Commission to End Homelessness. This remarkable social experiment, now called Denver s Road Home, is two years into implementing an innovative plan for ending homelessness. It provides a model for other cities nationwide where persistent homelessness has defied resolution. "Features of this unique book: Includes poignant stories of and interviews with homeless people from every background.Recounts the era of the brutal decapitation murders among Denver s homeless population.Author s first hand experience with and scholarly understanding of the homeless is reflected throughout.Shows the ways that businesses, nonprofits, and local, state, and the federal levels of government can work together to eliminate homelessness.Puts forth the radical proposals of Denver s Road Home ending homelessness by providing homes for people without them."Additional online resources to learn more about homelessness Colorado Coalition for the Homeless, www.coloradocoalition.orgCommunity for Creative Nonviolence, http: //users.erols.com/ccnv/ Corporation for Supportive Housing, www.csh.orgDenver s Road Home, www.denversroadhome.orgEveryone Deserves A Roof, www.edar.orgGood Samaritan Society, www.good-sam.comHousing Justice , www.housingjustice.orgNational Alliance to End Homelessness, www.endhomelessness.orgNational Coalition for Homeless Veterans, www.ncvh.orgNational Coalition for the Homeless, www.nationalhomeless.orgNational Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, www.nlchp.orgThe St. Francis Center, www.sfcdenver.orgUnited States Interagency Council on Homelessness, www.usich.gov"

Apollo, Challenger, Columbia: The Decline of the Space Program provides unparalleled longitudinal insight into the organizational successes and failures of NASA. The book treats NASA over its 45-year history from 1958 to 2003, concentrating on five "data points":
* 1967: when Tompkins first served as a Summer Faculty Consultant in Organizational Communication to legendary rocket scientist Wernher von Braun during the Apollo Program.
* 1968: when he served in the same capacity to help reorganize NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center.
* 1986: when he investigated the communication failures that caused the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger.
* 1987: when he researched NASA's highly successful Aviation Safety Reporting System.
* 2003: when he interpreted the communication failures leading up to the catastrophic failure of the space shuttle Columbia.
The result is a presentation of concrete communication correlates of organizational success and failure. Tompkins is a master of what Clifford Geertz called "thick description." The result is a compelling, richly detailed, longitudinal case study concentrating on processual changes in communication-as-organization. In this book, Tompkins introduces theory subtly, inserting it to explain details of the organization that would otherwise defy understanding.
In considering other organizations in trouble, Tompkins identifies ten "communication transgressions," one of which, for example, is "ignorantia affectata"--an affected or cultivated ignorance of organizational problems. In contrast to these failed organizations and their pathologies, Tompkins offers a sketch of two healthy organizations that live by "valuelogics"--applying ethical values in the organizational workplace. There are lessons to be learned from NASA's disasters. With all of the high-profile ethical lapses in U.S. corporations, Tompkins advocates individuals and organizations taking responsibility for their actions.