Comunidades Latinas Unidas En Servicio

Developing Healthy CommunitiesThrough Partnerships and Capacity

Presented by

Ruby Lee, President

www.clues.org

VisionTo create a thriving multicultural community

enriched with confident and strong Latino familieswho actively contribute their voices,

skills, entrepreneurial spirit, and cultural richnessto the community at large.

MissionTo advance the capacity of Latino familiesto be healthy, prosperous, and engaged

in their communities.

Four Pillars of Our Work

HEALTH AND FAMILY

WELLBEING

ECONOMIC VITALITY

CULTURAL AND CIVIC

ENGAGEMENT

EDUCATIONAL ACHIEVEMEN

T

Values that lead our work• Holistic and family-centered service delivery.

• Meet clients where they’re at, while building blocks for succesfull ladders of success.

• Focus on lifting two generations at once –working with parents and their children to build stable, nurturing homes for them to thrive socially, emotionally, educationally, and financially.

• Aim to eliminate barriers and build bridges out of poverty.

Goals for a Stronger Latino Community

• Boost employment and homeownership

• Advance policies that address equity in health, education, and financial assets

• Promote & preserve Latino culture

• Lift Latino Voices

Increasing Disparities in Minnesota

National Ratings

MN is home to 19 Fortune 500 Company headquarters with corporate giving programs

#1 in per capita home ownership

Among top five highest employment rate

Lowest rate of outflow in the nation

Highly educated population, usually at top of ACT/SAT test scores in nation

People of Color Realities

Largest racial poverty gap in the nation.

#49 per capita home ownership

Highest unemployment among people of color

In 5 yrs 600,000 new hires will be needed. Projected increase in working age pop. is 55,000

Lowest High School graduation

Building Capacity and Capital to Close Disparities Through Policy

Empowering Latino Families

• Today 32 million children live in in low-income homes.

• A study from National Center for Children in Poverty reported that Children who live in consitent poverty are more likely to enter their 20s without a H.S. diploma and four times more likely to have a teen premarital birth. However, an annual financial boost to the family of just $3,000 helped reap improvements in these areas.

• The asset of many communities is its network of community-based organizations. Through free tax services and innovative asset-building programs CLUES is providing that boost.

• We need to influence policy debates and channel resources to our community at state and local levels.

Strengthening Partnerships That Reduce Racial Disparities

• Re-imagining government and each one of our roles as change agents to address individual and collective goals that reduce disparities.

• Re-engineering the way community development is promoted, organized, and financed. Engaging local non-profits led by people of color and American Indians.

• Re-directing public dollars and investment for people of color to access services, opportunities, and assets.

• Improving access and eliminating barriers to employment, homeownership, food, and healthcare.