AUSTIN COMING TOGETHER
October 26, 2016
THRIVE 2025
INTRODUCTION | PAGE 3 THRIVE 2025 AGENDA & TEN YEAR GOALS PAGE 45 | MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: WEST SIDE HEALTH AUTHORITY PAGE 7
Austin Coming Together
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THRIVE 2025
Austin Weekly News, October 26, 2016
“Thank You” from Austin Coming Together ACT BOARD OF DIRECTORS Officers
Sharif Walker, Chair Program Director, After School Matters
Jacob Lesniewski, Secretary
Assistant Professor, Dominican University Graduate School of Social Work
Ruth Kimble, Vice-Chair
Jack Macnamara, Treasurer
Executive Director, Austin Childcare Provider’s Network
Visiting Scholar, Center For Urban Research And Learning
Directors Reverend Reginald E. Bachus
Sharon Morgan
Pastor, Friendship Baptist Church
Director, Graduate Support & Community Outreach, Catalyst Schools, Circle Rock Charter
Dawn Ferencak Associate Publisher, Austin Weekly News
Mildred Wiley
Tenisha Jones
Community Organizer, Institute for Nonviolence Chicago (Founding Board Chair)
Director of Education, Greater Auburn Gresham Development Corp
Reginald Little
Deborah Williams Senior Consultant, DW Provision Consulting Services
Consumer Loan Officer, ABC Bank
Larry Williams Broker, State Farm Insurance
ACT Member Organizations Academy of Scholastic Achievement American Red Cross ABC Bank
Circle Urban Ministries
KIPP Create
Community Bank of Oak Park River Forest
Literacy Works
Sarah’s Inn
Loretto Hospital
St. Anthony’s Hospital
Manufacturing Renaissance
St. Leonard’s Ministries
Mary Shyrese Daycare
Teach for America
Christ the King Jesuit College Prep
Austin Childcare Providers’ Network
Dominican University
Austin Weekly News
Erikson Institute
Banner Schools Be Strong Families
First Institute Training and Management
Because I Care
Friendship Baptist Church
BUILD, Inc.
Friendship Community Development Corporation
By the Hand Club Channing’s Child Care Chicago Community Loan Fund
First United Church of Oak Park Gone Again Travel I.C. Stars
Central Austin Neighborhood Association
Inspiration Corporation
Chicago Children’s Choir
Institute for Nonviolence Chicago
Chicago Jesuit Academy
Jane Addams Resource Corporation
ChildServ Church on the Block
Jumpstart Chicago
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Salvation Army
Mead Communications
The Cara Program
Mercy Housing Lakefront
The Catalyst Schools
Moving Everest Charter School
The Law Project
New Moms
The McCormick Center for Early Childhood Leadership
Oak Park River Forest Food Pantry
The Peace Corner Youth Center
Oak Park Regional Housing Center
Valerie Leonard Inc.
Positive Attitudes, Inc.
Westside Health Authority
VOCEL
Pyramid Players Productions
Worldvision
Prevention Partnership
Youth Guidance
Project Exploration Rape Victim Advocates Safer Foundation
THRIVE 2025
Austin Weekly News, October 26, 2016
IN T ROD U CTION
Welcome to Austin
O
ver the past 6 years, Austin Coming Together (ACT) has grown from a small network of 20 member organizations, to over 70 organizations that are committed to building a thriving Austin community. ACT’s membership includes organizations from Austin, like the Westside Health Authority and the Austin Childcare Providers’ Network, local churches like Friendship Baptist and Church on the Block, and other groups that help to bring resources to Austin’s families and institutions, like universities and larger social service agencies. Our mission is to convene and coordinate all of our members, so that together, we can increase our collective impact on EDUCATION and ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT outcomes in the Austin community. This year we have been hard at work with our members to kick off our “THRIVE 2025”Agenda, a long-term plan for community development in Austin. As you will see on the following pages, we’ve set ambitious goals that we plan to achieve over the next ten years. From now until 2025, we will coordinate our members and attract resources towards achieving these goals. Additionally, ACT will engage the community in planning and organizing activities, and we will provide quarterly updates on our progress of the THRIVE 2025 Agenda through these Austin Weekly News special sections. Join us along the way to hold ACT and our members accountable and to build power in the Austin community so that we can achieve great things together.
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For More Information:
arly Learning MATTERS!
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Austin Coming Together
5049 W. Harrison • Chicago, Illinois 60644 www.austincomingtogether.org
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THRIVE 2025
Austin Weekly News, October 26, 2016
Thrive 2025 Goals Quality Early Learning Children who have stable, nurturing environments from birth to age 5 are much more likely to do well in school and in life. Thus, we as a community need to invest in those who care for and teach them (parents, grandparents, childcare providers, teachers, etc.).
ACT estimates that our network will need to provide 3,900 high quality, accessible childcare and preschool slots for Austin’s children, birth to age 5, by 2025. In order to do this we need to ensure that childcare, preschool, and other supports are affordable and accessible for all parents in Austin. We must also ensure that child care providers, teachers, and other service providers receive the training they need to provide quality care and that they receive fair and decent wages for their work.
Living Wage Careers Parents with living wage careers are more likely to provide stable environments for their families. Furthermore, young people with jobs are less likely to end up in the streets. That is why we need to create viable pathways to living wage careers for our community members. ACT estimates that our network can prepare and place 500 people per year in good jobs by the year 2025. While our network does not currently have this capacity, we can achieve this goal by working together, attracting more public and private resources, and organizing to end discrimination against our community members in the work force.
THRIVE 2025
Austin Weekly News, October 26, 2016
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Safe Neighborhoods Safe neighborhoods begin with strong and healthy relationships between neighbors, especially between young people and adults. Neighbors who know and trust each other can more effectively solve safety problems, hold each other accountable, and resolve conflicts when they arise. Strong neighborhood relations can also decrease reliance on the police and create a stronger sense of unity and pride in the community. By the year 2025, ACT and our network will support daily gatherings between neighbors to build relationships with young people, heal from trauma, and solve problems. ACT and our members will build our capacity to create safe community spaces where neighbors of all ages can congregate, talk to each other, and resolve conflicts.
Stable Housing Market Over the past ten years, foreclosure and abandonment have hit Austin’s housing market hard. Without a stable environment for current owners and new homebuyers, Austin’s population has declined significantly over the past 10 years. Neighborhoods need continuing investment in housing by homeowners and a steady stream of new homebuyers to stabilize the market and By the year 2025, ACT and our network will stabilize ownership of 400 residential properties in Austin. This must be done through a combination of efforts, including acquiring and rehabbing vacant buildings for homeownership, supporting homeowners to make investments in their properties, and to market Austin neighborhoods as viable, affordable options for new homebuyers.
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THRIVE 2025
Austin Weekly News, October 26, 2016
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THRIVE 2025
Austin Weekly News, October 26, 2016
Fall Kick Off: Good Neighbor Campaign
ed, and added input from the organizers at our meetings.” Bell says that building neighborhood connections as a method of fighting violence was an idea that came from the surveys of residents of Austin. “The majority of people we talked with talked about a time they felt connected with their neighbors. They don’t feel that way now. We want to connect residents with shared goals and values. For most people, this overwhelmingly means supporting the youth.” Building off the African proverb that it takes a village to raise a child, for the past twenty years, WHA has been working on the Every Block a Village model. Bell says that one of the keys to the Good Neighbor Campaign will be expanding the Every Block a Village model into more neighborhoods in mid Pastor Steve Epting and south Austin. Good Neighbor Epting agrees that everyone inCampaign planning volved in the Good Neighbor Camcoordinator paign, from organization leaders to residents, sees the youth of the community as a focal point. “A main focus is opportunities for youth from civics, arts and culture to jobs. We want groups to use their skill sets to get involved. We want to create jobs. All of our opportunities will be about supporting our youth and lifting them up.” A second part of the Good Neighbor Campaign is the Church Connection. Churches will be encouraged to come out from behind their walls and engage in outreach in the blocks surrounding their buildings. Bell says that efforts by churches will include linking youth with seniors through service opportunities and working to reclaim abandoned buildings near churches that may have become drug havens. A third piece of the puzzle is the Community Pride Campaign. Building on ACT’s summer work promoting the I Love Austin message throughout the community, the Community Pride Campaign will use yard signs and mural projects to promote the message of being a good neighbor. Epting says that while the program is just being kickstarted, he sees the possibility for long-term success. “The are Campaign YOU ready? Good Neighbor starts with us getting to know Earn more money and gain skills that are in high demand. our neighbors. It’s an organic stance, building to a thought process toget action. This could work and be adopted by other set… areas.” Enroll in a FREE Advanced Manufacturing training program. Choose from CNC Machine Operator,Percy Welding,Giles, Press Brake, or For more information, contact: 773-682-6045. Factory Automation.
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By Lacey Sikora
hanging a neighborhood for the better means taking the small steps that will, when taken together, become the large effort that brings positive change for a community. On October 25, the Westside Health Authority (WHA) along with several other organizations in Austin kicked off the Good Neighbor Campaign to bring positive change to Austin. WHA’s Quiwana Bell says the Good Neighbor Campaign involves a coalition of different groups in Austin. From grass roots organizations to churches to youth organiza-
File photo
Good neighbors from the Austin Green Team on their 2013 garden walk. tions to businesses, all will join together to find a solution to youth violence. Pastor Steve Epting, who has been coordinating the planning process for the Good Neighbor Campaign says that the first step was bringing residents to the table. “We wanted to address some of the issues that plague the community. We conducted surveys of the community about what we need-
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THRIVE 2025
Austin Weekly News, October 26, 2016
Quality Early Learning
Safe Neighborhoods
Quality Early Learning
Safe Neighborhoods
Thrive 2025
Our Common Agenda
Thrive 2025
For more information visit www.austincomingtogether.org Or call us at (773) 417Â8618
Our Common Agenda For more information visit www.austincomingtogether.org Or call us at (773) 417Â8618
Living Wage Jobs
Stable Housing Market