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Session Descriptions,
Training
Summit on Grassroots Community Building
for the
21st Century
(posted June 1999)
Organizing For Zone Community Development
The Zone Model will be explained for the
audience. Organization is one of the first steps in community development.
However, many poor communities have had little or no experience in organizing
themselves into any continuing broad association of residents for community
improvement. This workshop is designed to inform you on how to begin or
make necessary changes in your community organizing process. It will
provide information on how to identify and organize heads of local organizations,
community-based groups, government units, local institutions, individual
leaders and low-income and minority residents to form a lead entity/steering
committee/board to develop and implement a program. It will look at what
kinds of organizations should be partnering and how they can be encouraged
to join the partnership and remain as active participants.
Strategic Planning as an Organizing Tool
Strategic planning provides a roadmap from
the problem conditions they address to the vision they seek to advance.
From this roadmap detailed workplans can be created which then translate
the strategies into specific action steps. Learn how to use the strategic
plan to assign responsibility, timetables, and budgets. Also learn to use
the strategic plan as a tool for organizing critical phases in a process
to transform ideas into initiatives for community development thus avoiding
critical failures. The workshop will also explore ideas for adapting strategic
plans to changes in circumstances of a community.
Understanding Benchmarks
The cornerstone for implementing a strategic
plan are the benchmarks developed to measure performance in achieving the
objectives of each of the programs in the plan. This workshop will discuss
what are benchmarks, how they are used, and why they are needed within
the context of the Zone Communities. This workshop will examine how
Zone Communities develop benchmarks, key components of the benchmark reporting
process and alternative methods for measuring performance.
Sustainable Community Development
Sustainable community development is one of the key principles of the Zone Initiative. It is important to help communities understand how to establish and maintain sustainable programs. This workshop will talk about forming key partnerships to serve as the basis for long-term, sustainable development. Sustainability indicators as well as the characteristics of sustainability will be explained. It will also explore how communities can evaluate the impact of any given program on the overall strategic plan and on how each program may suggest other programs to pursue in a balanced and integrated plan of environmental, social, economic and community development.
The Empowerment Agenda;
A Comprehensive Approach to Community
and
Economic Development
You will hear about an Initiative that
is directed by Vice President Gore through the
Community Empowerment Board, the cabinet-level
interagency Task Force designed to coordinate the Federal Government's
effort to revitalize distressed communities. The EZ/EC Initiative has been
a catalyst to improving the quality of life in many of America's most distressed
rural and urban communities.
What is community development, as it relates to the Zone Initiative? Are there any specific, written instructions for the community development process? How does community capacity relate to community development? Why is genuine citizen participation in the decision-making process so important in community development?
All these questions and more will be answered
during this session. This is an opportunity to examine what, within the
context of the Zone Initiative, community development means and what are
the conditions needed at the local level to advance this process in a community.
There will also be time allotted to take questions from the audience.
Zone Board Members; Leadership Development;
Effective and Diverse Citizen Participation
It is very important to build the capacity of new and/or inexperienced supported communities boards so that they can function effectively both individually and collectively. This workshop will give an overview of some of the duties and responsibilities of boards in such areas as defining and redefining strategic plans and benchmarks, staff selection, and resource development. Areas of emphasis will include: developing board governing policies and procedures, the role of board members in program oversight and management, staff performance evaluation, sub-grantee monitoring, fiscal accountability, benchmark development, managing change and public relations.
One of the more critical success factors
of the Zone Initiative is its lead-entity board structure. It is very important
to build the capacity of a new and/or inexperienced supported community
board so that it can function effectively both individually and collectively.
This workshop will explore the advantages of diverse participation, learn
how to encourage diverse and broad participation in the work of community
development. Learn how diversity expands the array of choices available
to a community and why it has proven to be good, sound business management.
Effective Technical Assistance
The two most critical components in creating
sustainable rural community development are an educated citizenry in the
supported communities and the provision of effective, long-term technical
assistance to them. What is effective technical assistance, how can
you recognize it, and how can you provide it? This workshop will provide
a working definition of "technical assistance," illustrate various technical
assistance models and methods as well as its appropriate application, and
offer some guidance in helping field staff decide how best to prepare themselves
to fill this critical role.
Building Social Capital
The Zone Model stands out for giving explicit attention to strengthening social capital in the process of achieving other program goals. However it is critical that specific attention be given to building in measures of social capital in Rural Development guidelines for program development and evaluation. In this workshop participants will define social capital, discuss the critical importance of community context on program effectiveness and identify key factors of program design which can enhance or undermine social capital. This will be a working session where attendees will develop measures of social capital and define ways to evaluate how the developing social capital impacts community programs.
Networking
What is Networking? How do we seek out Networks that can best help us gain new insights or innovative ideas? Networking time with others with similar issues and concerns can often provide a unified, broader source for services, standards and collaborations. Through networking, we often discover excellent resources and best practices to make our work easier.
Obtaining Non-Cash Resources,
Obtaining Non-governmental Development
Funds and
Obtaining Foundation Funds
What/where are the resources that you can draw upon without spending money? This session is designed to provide information about volunteer programs, innovative approaches to solving staffing issues, or how to overcome a lack of computer "know how." Zone efforts to leverage dollars with non-Zone funds is critical in implementing strategic plans and building program sustainability.
Some foundations are assuming leadership
roles in providing assistance and support to communities in areas where
there is mutual program interest. This workshop will address how to identify
and work with local, regional and national foundations.
Designing an Effective Community Development Program
How do you design a process to promote continuous individual and community growth and improvement? Learn why effective community development programs must be planned to meet the needs of the citizens. Learn why the development process cannot be reduced to a formula or set of guidelines or instructions. This workshop will address building community capacity which, in-turn, provides the foundation for mobilizing resources both inside and outside the community to create the conditions needed for the long-term success.