community college, public institution of higher education. Community colleges are characterized by a two-year curriculum that leads to either the associate degree or transfer to a four-year college. The transfer program parallels the first two years of a four-year college. The degree program generally prepares students for direct entrance into an occupation. Because of their low tuition, local setting, and relatively easy entrance requirements, community colleges have been a major force in the post-World War II expansion of educational opportunities in the United States. They are also referred to as junior colleges.

community chest, cooperative organization of citizens and social welfare agencies in a city. Also known as a united fund, it has two purposes: to raise funds through an annual campaign for its member agencies and to budget the funds raised. The fund is administered by the community chest or united fund itself, or as a joint endeavor with a community welfare council; to represent the idea of administering, as well as collecting, the funds, the national association in 1927 took the name Community Chests and Councils. Today the organization's official name is the United Way of America. In 1974, it formed United Way International to provide assistance to the international United Way community and similar fundraising organizations outside the United States. The idea of cooperative collecting for charitable purposes originated in Liverpool, England (1873), and, in the United States, in Denver (1887). In 1900 the Cleveland chamber of commerce went a step further and assumed responsibility for endorsing the agencies seeking funds; 13 years later Cleveland brought almost all its welfare organizations together in the Cleveland Welfare Council. The name community chest was coined in Rochester, N.Y., in 1913.

climax community: see ecology.

Taizé Community, ecumenical Christian community based in Taizé, Burgundy, France. The community was founded by Roger Schutz, 1915-2005, a Swiss Protestant theologian who came to Taizé in 1940 to establish a monastery and became known as Brother Roger. In 1949 he and others who had joined him formally established a monastic community of brothers, committing to a simple, celibate life. The brothers seek to awaken spirituality, particularly in young adults, and promote Christian unity and peace. The community's style of worship, including the mixing of meditative prayer and song, periods of silence, and the use of light have influenced services in many Christian churches.

French Community, established in 1958 by the constitution of the Fifth French Republic to replace the French Union. Its members consisted of the French Republic, which included metropolitan France (continental France, Corsica, Algeria and the Sahara), the overseas territories (Comoro Islands, French Polynesia, the Territory of the Afars and the Issas, New Caledonia, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, the French Southern and Antarctic territories, and the Wallis and Futuna Islands), the overseas departments (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Réunion), and six independent African republics (the Central African Republic, Chad, Congo (Brazzaville), Gabon, Malagasy Republic, and Senegal). The member states were self-governing but were represented through the institutions of the Community in matters of common interest: foreign policy, defense, economic and financial policy, policy on strategic raw materials, supervision of courts, higher education, and communications. In 1962 the metropolitan departments of Algeria and the Sahara became the sovereign state of Algeria and ceased to be part of the Community. After 1962, the Community operated primarily through bilateral agreements in the areas of military, economic, technical, and cultural affairs between the French Republic and other members. However, as the former French African possessions evolved their own political and economic structures, the French Community became largely defunct, although it was not formally abolished.

European Economic Community (EEC), organization established (1958) by a treaty signed in 1957 by Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and West Germany (now Germany); it was known informally as the Common Market. The EEC was the most significant of the three treaty organizations that were consolidated in 1967 to form the European Community (EC; known since the ratification [1993] of the Maastricht treaty as the European Union). The EEC had as its aim the eventual economic union of its member nations, ultimately leading to political union. It worked for the free movement of labor and capital, the abolition of trusts and cartels, and the development of joint and reciprocal policies on labor, social welfare, agriculture, transport, and foreign trade.

In 1958, Britain proposed that the Common Market be expanded into a transatlantic free-trade area. After the proposal was vetoed by France, Britain engineered the formation (1960) of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and was joined by other European nations that did not belong to the Common Market. Beginning in 1973, EFTA and the EEC negotiated a series of agreements that would insure uniformity between the two organizations in many areas of economic policy, and by 1995, all but four of EFTA's members had transferred their memberships from EFTA to the European Union.

One of the first important accomplishments of the EEC was the establishment (1962) of common price levels for agricultural products. In 1968, internal tariffs (tariffs on trade between member nations) were eliminated and a common external tariff was fixed. For subsequent developments, see European Union.

European Community: see European Union.

European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), 1st treaty organization of what has become the European Union; established by the Treaty of Paris (1952). It is also known as the Schuman Plan, after the French foreign minister, Robert Schuman, who proposed it in 1950. Member nations of ECSC pledged to pool their coal and steel resources by providing a unified market for their coal and steel products, lifting restrictions on imports and exports, and creating a unified labor market. Economically, the Coal and Steel Community achieved early success; between 1952 and 1960 iron and steel production rose by 75% in the ECSC nations, and industrial production rose 58%. When overproduction of coal became a problem after 1959, especially in Belgium, the ECSC demonstrated its flexibility by reducing Belgium's coal-producing capacity by 30% and by making available large sums of money to aid in retraining miners and developing new industries. The ECSC had, by 1970, granted about $150 million in aid to retrain over 400,000 coal miners. The executive machinery of the ECSC provided an important precedent for the future growth of a united Europe: the nine-member High Authority, which became a part of the European Commission in 1967, was chosen by the member governments and made independent of those governments. Its independence was guaranteed by providing the authority with its own source of income.

European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom or EAEC), economic organization that came into being as the 3d treaty organization of what has become the European Union; established by the Treaty of Rome (1958). The members pledged themselves to the common development of Europe's nuclear energy resources by coordinating their nuclear research and development programs and by permitting the free movement of nuclear raw materials, equipment, investment capital, and specialists within the community. Euratom is vested with wide powers, including the right to conclude contracts, obtain raw materials, and establish standards to protect workers and the general population against the dangers of radiation. It is administered by the European Commission, which is advised by the Scientific and Technical Committee and the Economic and Social Committee.

Cranbrook Educational Community, at Bloomfield Hills, Mich.; est. and endowed by George G. and Ellen Scripps Booth in 1927. It includes the Cranbrook Academy of Art, with graduate programs in fine arts and architecture and a noted art museum; Cranbrook Institute of Science, a natural history and science museum; Brookside Lower School (coeducational); Cranbrook Kingswood Middle School (combining Cranbrook School [1927] and Kingswood School [1931], with separate programs for boys and girls); and Cranbrook Kingswood Upper School (coeducational). Most of the buildings were designed by Eliel Saarinen. Many statues by Carl Milles are also there. Saarinen's work has been partially restored and respectfully added to in an extensive building program begun in mid-1980s.

Community of Christ, formerly the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, religious group that regards itself as the successor of the church founded by Joseph Smith. They organized in 1852, five years after Mormons under Brigham Young began settling in Utah, formally becoming the Reorganized Church in 1860, with Joseph Smith 3d (son of the Mormon founder), as their first president. Since that time the church has been separate and distinct from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with its headquarters in Salt Lake City, Utah. The headquarters of the Community of Christ were first at Plano, Ill., until 1881, then at Lamoni, Iowa, until 1904, and since 1904 in Independence, Mo. The church adopted its present name in 2001. The doctrines of the church are derived from the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the Doctrines and Convenants (recognized revelations to church leaders). Brigham Young and his position on polygamy are rejected; there are other beliefs and practices they do not share with the Mormons, including the ordination of women. In 1997 there were about 249,000 members.

Caribbean Community and Common Market (CARICOM), organization founded by the Treaty of Chaguaramas (Trinidad; 1973, revised 2001) and including Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti (suspended 2004-6), Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago. Anguilla, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, and the Turks and Caicos Islands are associate members. Its purpose is to promote economic integration and development, especially in less-developed areas of the region. Besides managing a common market, CARICOM formulates policies regarding health, education, labor, science and technology, tourism, foreign policy, and the environment. CARICOM's headquarters are in Georgetown, Guyana. In 2005 the organization established the Caribbean Court of Justice, which functions for participating nations as a final court of appeals and as a court of original jurisdiction for settling disputes among CARICOM nations. In 2006 Caricom inaugurated its single market and economy when six of its members participated in the establishment of a CARICOM single market. The establishment of a single economy for participating nations is planned for 2008. Other affiliated institutions include the Caribbean Development Bank, the Univ. of Guyana, and the Univ. of the West Indies.

Property held jointly by a husband and wife. In states having a community property system, property acquired by either spouse during the marriage may be deemed to belong to each spouse as an undivided one-half interest. Some property (e.g., gifts to one spouse) may be classified as separate, but in lawsuits over the classification of property the presumption is in favour of the community category. Some jurisdictions extend community property laws to same-sex unions.

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or community college

Educational institution that provides up to two years of college-level academic, technical, and vocational instruction with emphasis on career preparation. Roots of the junior college may be traced to the Chautauqua movement and other adult-education programs created after the American Civil War. The first junior college opened in Joliet, Ill., in 1901. The vast majority of junior colleges are publicly supported; called community colleges, they offer a variety of flexible programs that are often nontraditional in style and content. They have pioneered in offering part-time study, evening sessions, instruction by television, weekend workshops, and other services for members of their communities. Students rarely live on campus. Graduates of junior or community colleges ordinarily earn an associate's degree. They then transfer to a four-year college or enter the workforce. Seealso continuing education.

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or social settlement or community centre

Neighbourhood social-welfare agency. The staff of a settlement house may sponsor clubs, classes, athletic teams, and interest groups; they may employ such specialists as vocational counselors and caseworkers. The settlement movement began with the founding of Toynbee Hall in London in 1884 by Samuel Augustus Barnett (1844–1913). It spread to the U.S. in the late 19th century with the establishment of such institutions as Chicago's Hull House (founded by Jane Addams). Many countries now have similar institutions. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, U.S. settlement houses were active among the masses of new immigrants and worked for reform legislation such as workers' compensation and child-labour laws.

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Utopian religious community founded by John H. Noyes in Oneida, N.Y., in 1848. Noyes, who believed that the Second Coming of Jesus Christ had occurred in AD 70, and his disciples formed their first religious society in Putney, Vt., in 1841 in order to establish the millennial kingdom. Their practice of “complex marriage,” according to which each adult community member was married to each adult of the opposite sex, aroused the hostility of the townspeople, and they were obliged to move to Oneida. The Oneida group lived communally and flourished for 30 years, supporting itself by farming and manufacturing steel traps, silverware, and other items. The community broke up in 1879, and two years later the remaining members reorganized it as a commercial enterprise, which is noted for the manufacture of silver plate.

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(French, la Communauté) Association of overseas territories created in 1958 by the constitution of the Fifth Republic to replace the French Union in dealing with matters of foreign policy, defense, currency and economic policy, and higher education. As the former colonies gained full independence in the 1960s and '70s, the Community became obsolete; it was defunct by the late 1970s.

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later European Community (EC) known as the Common Market

Association of European countries designed to promote European economic unity. It was established by the Treaty of Rome in 1957 to develop the economies of the member states into a single common market and to build a political union of the states of western Europe. The EEC also sought to establish a single commercial policy toward nonmember countries, to coordinate transportation systems, agricultural policies, and general economic policies, to remove measures restricting free competition, and to assure the mobility of labour, capital, and entrepreneurship among member states. The liberalized trade policies it sponsored from the 1950s were highly successful in increasing trade and economic prosperity in western Europe. In 1967 its governing bodies were merged into the European Community. In 1993 the EEC was renamed the European Community (EC); it is now the principal organization within the European Union.

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Administrative agency designed to integrate the coal and steel industries of France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. It originated in the plan of Robert Schuman (1950) to establish a common market for coal and steel by those countries willing to submit to an independent authority. Created in 1952, the ECSC came to include all members of the European Union. It initially removed barriers to trade in coal, coke, steel, pig iron, and scrap iron; it later supervised the reduction of its members' excess production. In 1967 its governing bodies were merged into the European Community. When the treaty expired in 2002, the ECSC was dissolved.

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International organization established in 1958 to form a common market for developing peaceful uses of atomic energy. It originally had six members; it now includes all members of the European Union. Among its aims were to facilitate the establishment of a nuclear energy industry on a European rather than a national scale, coordinate research, encourage construction of power plants, establish safety regulations, and establish a common market for trade in nuclear equipment and materials. In 1967 its governing bodies were merged into the European Community.

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formerly Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints

Faction of the religion founded by Joseph Smith in 1830, whose main body became the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, or Mormon church. The sect, originally known as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, broke away in 1852, rejecting the leadership of Brigham Young in favour of Smith's son; it also rejected the practice of polygamy and the label Mormon. Its teachings are based on the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the Doctrine and Covenants, a book of revelations received by its prophets. In 2001 the church formally changed its name to Community of Christ. In the early 21st century it had about 250,000 members and was headquartered in Independence, Mo.

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