1 Knowledge is Power: strengthening your understanding of your community

1Knowledge is Power: strengthening your understanding of your community


Community Engagement

WHAT: Reaching out, involving, facilitating, listening and learning from

WHO: People who reflect the community. People who hold credibility at all layers of the community (not just official leaders and so-called “experts”) AND people who represent the cultural, ethnic, racial, political and social diversity of the community.


Community Engagement

HOW: Seeking input through dialogue, discourse, debate, research and technology; working together to determine priorities, set an agenda, build commitment, and increase the potential for collective action

WHY: To enhance the sense of community, collectively build knowledge of the community, and create the human capacity in the community to act on complex community problems


What’s the extent of engagement at your UW?

1. Mainly engage the community in the annual fundraising campaign.

2. Involved from time to time in community research & engagement beyond the campaign.

3. Regularly involved in community research & education. Organize and support ongoing community involvement.

4. Regularly involved in community research & education, actively involved in multiple approaches & activities. Successfully engage a wide spectrum of community and encourage the community to participate in the spectrum of UW programs (planning to execution).


Principles of Community Engagement

Ongoing -- not just a series of tasks to be accomplished

Common good – inspires a belief in shared concerns (Low educational attainment affects everyone)

Common ground — getting agreement and buy in

Action — community members are active in the talking and the doing

Listening — genuine listening is critical

Reach — beyond our usual work with companies, volunteers and agencies


Community Engagement more than civic engagement

Civic engagement refers to participation in the civic (government) realm. The usual forms and measures include things like voting, being involved in public policy, running for office etc.

Civic engagement is important. But it’s only part of community engagement which refers to participation in the community more generally.

civic= of or relating to a city, citizenship or civil affairs

civil= of or relating to citizens or the state as a political body

United Ways engage more than citizens


Community

An entire geographic area

A neighborhood

A school district

A city

A population segment

Latinos

teen mothers

A shared or common interest

the early childhood community


Engagement

More than a survey

More than volunteering

Volunteering is important. It’s of value in and of itself.

But it’s just a piece of engagement.

It can be a strategy to lead to deeper engagement

It can be a way to mobilize resources behind a strategy.


United Ways and Volunteer Centers

• Nearly half (46%) of United Ways support a Volunteer Center

• More than half (60%) of United Ways have links to volunteer opportunities on their websites

• Referrals resulted in more than 9.5 million hours of volunteer service annually

• Volunteer Solutions resulted in nearly 200,000 referrals in 2005


United Way and Day of Caring

• Almost 500 United Ways conduct a Day of Caring

• More than 350,000 people volunteer annually with Day of Caring

• Fewer than one third of the United Ways align the event with their community impact work


Knowing the Community

Community Engagement and Vision

• know the formal and informal leaders

• understand the social and economic landscape

• listen to and learn from members of the community

• build a shared commitment to act

At the base of the transformation


Knowledge of the Community

Broader and Deeper

Multiple methods---more than a survey


Shared Community Vision

•Beyond assessing needs

•Beyond collecting data

•Beyond indicator reports

•Looking for aspirations, assets and priorities

• (not United Way’s vision but the community vision

•Setting goals for collective action.


The WorkUnited Way of Northeast Florida

United Way of Northeast Florida’s Stein Fellowship

The Mayor’s Early Literacy Project – Rally Readers

Multi-generational Early Literacy Collaboration

Born Learning Inter-active workshops


The Engagement StrategyUnited Way of Northeast Florida

United Way of Northeast Florida’s Women In Local Leadership (WILL) and the Born Learning Campaign

Born Learning Webinar – Key Volunteers

Focus Group involving 10-15 WILL members

Born Learning Breakfast

Born Learning Engagement Opportunities

Partner with Community Leaders


The StrategyUnited Way for Southeastern Michigan

Task:

– Reach as many people as possible from all sectors and the community at large.

– Elevate their voice towards a regional aspiration & an Agenda for Change.

Tactics:

– Leadership Interviews (100); Focus Groups (30)

– Community Action Survey – 6,500

– Innovative, Cost Efficient and Built from our Strengths – i.e. Relationships

– Viral Web-based & 2-1-1 Invite

– Total organizational commitment needed

– 4.5 million people in our region; 4,200 responses was the goal – 99% confidence


The StrategyLatino Advisory Delegation created to investigate life in Dane County

28 Latino leaders

9 monthly meetings

Data, data, data

Determine scope

and dimension

Listening to the

community

Comprehensive recommendations

Latino mortgage originations lag behind whites

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

85

90

1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004

White mortgages

Latino mortgages

Black mortgages

Percent of mortgages originated from applications


The StrategyCuéntame allowed us to experiment with engagement methods

Leadership team

Data walls

Radio

Stakeholder engagement

Listening session

Report launch


The Payoff: Huge media visibility, strengthened reputation as convener, created trust

Community rhythm

Developed trust with Latino reputational leaders, Latino media

Latinos reciprocated

Latino “central”

Agencies noticed—clients, board members, staff, increased culturally competent services

Increased programming in 2007


Lessons Learned?Do it again? Yes!

Off on wrong foot

Months of planning, conversations, developing relationships with reputational leaders

Report launch too long

Creative community engagement

Involved students: youth delegation, artwork

Follow-up, follow-up


Turning Information Into Action

The Strategy

The Anchorage Community Assessment Project


The Strategy

Partnerships MatterMunicipality of Anchorage

Academic – Business - Foundation


The Strategy

Volunteers Matter• Short term

• Long term


The Strategy

Surveys• 1100 Face-to-Face

• 400 Telephone

Secondary Data


The Strategy

Community Matters• Voice in goal setting

Results Matter• Clear indicators with which to measure success


The Payoff

Awareness• Extensive media coverage


Neighbor Engaging Neighbor

The Payoff

“If you need my help again, just ask! I enjoyed the experience.”

Randy Akers Volunteer


0%

25%

50%

75%

100%

The Payoff

Volunteer work only

Both volunteer and contribute

Contribute money only

72.2 %

30.8 %37.0%

Civic Engagement


Parting Thoughts

• Community Engagement—

• It’s civic and more

• Engagement is volunteering and more.

• It requires the involvement of Community Impact, Brand and RD.

• It starts with knowing the community.

• There are many ways to do that.

• It can be strategic.

• It doesn’t just happen.


More Resources

Knowledge Café

Point of View

Get Engaged Get Engaged webinar

2 SLC presentations

2 Brand forum presentations

Other people in component 1

Community Engagement Community of Practice

Documents

1 Knowledge is Power: strengthening your understanding of your community