In honor of our 125th Anniversary, we will be using our newsletter to highlight 125 projects or initiatives that use civic capital to solve problems and build equitable, thriving communities. These cities have been recognized for engaging community members in collaborative efforts to improve education, health care, economic prosperity and the general quality of life. Today, examples 31-40:
- San Antonio, TX. Teen pregnancy has been a major problem in Bexar County, with 2010 rates among the highest in the United States. That distinction didn’t sit well, so the San Antonio Teen Pregnancy Prevention Collaborative (SATPPC) was formed to reduce the teen birth rate among females ages 15 to 19.
- Springdale, AR. Inspired by Little Free Libraries (small structures housing small collections of books that anyone can take to read or leave books for others), the 2016-2017 Leadership Springdale class raised enough money to build and setup little free food pantries around Springdale.
- Placentia, CA. Placentia has embarked upon a comprehensive plan for the revitalization, activation, and economic growth of the city’s Old Town area – the original central business district founded in 1910 around the original train depot and the citrus packing houses.
- Denver, CO. The Colorado Black Health Collaborative was formed to change health outcomes for African Americans in Colorado through stronger networks and engaging residents in familiar places. Collaborative efforts are guided by a coalition of community members including medical professionals, financial and government professionals, professionals from other non-profit agencies, college students, and members of the community-at-large.
- Chelsea, MA. The Neighborhood Developers (TND)-initiated North Bellingham Hill Action Plan secured resources which led to improvements of the streets, sewer and water, lighting and trees, a neighborhood park, traffic calming, cleaner streets, recycling, housing quality and civic engagement in North Bellingham Hill.
- Las Vegas, NV. The Harbor is a Juvenile Assessment Center located in Las Vegas that addresses disproportionate minority contact, as it diverts youth, primarily youth of color, from the juvenile justice system. A multi-agency collaboration, the Harbor includes staff and supervision from the Clark County Department of Juvenile Justice Services, the City of Las Vegas, the Department of Family Services, Clark County School District, and many other organizations.
- Decatur, GA. In 2015, the Decatur Police Department began an effort to reform the way they do policing. The process, which involved extensive community outreach and guidance, has led to community policing being embedded in the Decatur Police department’s culture to the point that Decatur Police now refer to themselves as “Community Relations Officers Who Enforce the Law.”
- Marshalltown, IA. In Marshalltown, Iowa, diabetes was affecting a significant portion of the population. Marshalltown was poorly equipped to provide preventive interventions, especially for the Latino population. With a mind to remedy this disparity, the YMCA-YWCA won a bid to become one of only 10 YMCAs in the United States in 2010 to pilot a new evidenced-based diabetes prevention program.
- Cincinnati, OH. From its industrial past, the City of Cincinnati’s Green Cincinnati Plan (GCP) has helped to create a more sustainable, resilient, equitable future. The 2018 update of GCP was led by a diverse steering committee of leaders charged with ensuring an inclusive process for the plan, that would emphasize sustainability, resilience, and equity as components of any recommendations.
- Stockton, CA. Higher education has for centuries served as both a gateway to the middle class and a vehicle for socioeconomic mobility. Launched in 2018, Stockton Scholars, is a research-informed, collective impact strategy anchored by, but not limited to, a city-wide college scholarship, modeled after successful Promise Programs in Long Beach, Pittsburgh, and Oakland.
*Examples 1-10
*Examples 11-20
*Examples 21-30
