Community Conversation

May 23, 2013

United Way Southern Institute

2Community ConversationMay 23, 2013

Agenda

• Why do a Community Conversation?

• Pre-conversation work

• United Way of Blount County 2008 Community Conversation Case Study

• Let’s Talk

3Community ConversationMay 23, 2013

Why Bother?

• Partner Education

• External Perspective

• Community Buy-in

NOT

• Solutions

• Strategic Plan

4Community ConversationMay 23, 2013

Setting the Stage

• Planning Group – Board, Staff and Community

• Loose idea of vision and benchmarks

• Board Ownership

• The right people at the table

5Community ConversationSeptember 16, 2008

Agenda from 2008 UWBC Community Conversation

Welcome

• What are Community Benchmarks?

• Why do we need Community Benchmarks?

• How so we establish Community Benchmarks?

• Where do we go once we have Community Benchmarks?

Sub-Group Work

• Establish the Indicator

• Identify the needed data

• Schedule next work session

6Community ConversationSeptember 16, 2008

What are Community Benchmarks?

Definition: A specific, measurable outcome that indicates how a community has changed or desires to change over a period of time.

Benchmarks Are: Benchmarks Are NOT:

Outcomes

Trackable now

Non-population specific

Realistic yet challenging Pie-in-the-sky thinking

Focused on one demographic

Numbers served

For the future

7Community ConversationSeptember 16, 2008

Why do we need Community Benchmarks?

Collaboration: Blount County has many resources already working toward these benchmarks.

Communication: A concrete goal can be communicated more easily to the public.

Accountability: We need to be able to report both our successes and challenges.

8Community ConversationSeptember 16, 2008

How do we establish Community Benchmarks?

1st Step • Determine the indicator for the benchmark• Identify data sources for measuring the indicator

2nd Step • Establish a history for the indicator• Create challenging yet attainable 5-year goal

3rd Step • Identify sub-categories for each benchmark• Prioritize sub-categories by community need

9Community ConversationSeptember 16, 2008

Where do we go once we have Community Benchmarks?

AnnounceMeasure

ReportMeasure

Report

What will United Way of Blount County do with these Community Benchmarks?

The indicators and priorities determined by you, the experts of the community, will be used by United Way volunteers to focus funding on the community programs that make the greatest impact.

10Community ConversationSeptember 16, 2008

United Way of Blount County – Focus Areas and Benchmarks

Education:Helping People

Achieve Their Potential

Creating the opportunities for a good life for all by focusing on:

Self-Sufficiency:Promoting Financial

Stability and Independence

Health:Increasing Access to

Services for All

•School readiness•Academic achievement

•Productive & engaged adults

•Achieving greater financial stability

• Increasing income•Financial assets for long-term stability

•Emergency services•Access to health care•Populations with special needs served

11Community ConversationSeptember 16, 2008

Health: Tentative Benchmarks

HEALTH: Increasing Access to Services for All

1. Safety-net services: Blount County residents are able to access immediate safety-net services.

Indicator: % of increase in use of 2-1-1 for Safety-Net services.

2. Basic health care coverage and prevention: All residents receive timely, regular, preventative health care.

Indicator A: % of people who do not have health care insurance or are underinsured.Indicator B: % of uninsured/underinsured who are receiving health care services.

3. Services for at-risk populations: Individuals with special needs have access to education and/or social opportunities.

Indicator: % of individuals with special needs receiving educational/social services.

12Community ConversationSeptember 16, 2008

Education: Tentative Benchmarks

EDUCATION: Helping People Achieve Their Potential

1. Readiness to succeed in school: Children enter school developmentally on track in the areas of literacy and social, emotional, and intellectual skills.

Indicator: % of kindergartners with school-readiness skills as indicated by current testing.

2. Academic achievement: Young people graduate from high school.Indicator: % of public high school students graduation rate (NCLB).

3. Productive and engaged adults: Adults have the skills necessary to be in the workforce.

Indicator: % of unemployment rate.

13Community ConversationSeptember 16, 2008

Self-Sufficiency: Tentative Benchmarks

Self-Sufficiency: Promoting Financial Stability

3. Gaining and sustaining assets: Lower-income working families build appreciating assets.

2. Increasing income: Working families increase their income.

1. Achieving greater financial stability: Lower-income working families move towards financial independence.

Indicator: % of lower-income working families who spend more than 40% of their income on housing.

Indicator: % of working families who are lower-income as defined by federal government standards.

Indicator: % of homeownership for lower-income working families.

14Community ConversationSeptember 16, 2008

Let’s Talk

Moving to Community Impact

Positive Outcomes

Barriers to Move

Partners to Explore

Next Step

Biggest Impact

Hardest to Do

Most Affordable

Easiest to Do

15Focus Group – Self-SufficiencySeptember 16, 2008

Michelle Hankes

michellehankes@gmail.com

THANK YOU!