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Community Projects In addition to attending monthly training modules, participants in the Neighborhood College worked on neighborhood revitalization projects that focused on an advocacy issue or community concern. The following issues and projects have been proposed by cohorts 3 and 4 of the DC Neighborhood College.
Anger into Action, Chelsey Kelly Youth of the 21st Century must connect with one another and with caring adults to affect change in their neighborhoods and communities. Anger into Action will assist youth in the District to become engaged, informed, and civic-minded citizens in the District of Columbia. This project will provide District youth with the training to turn anger into action and their frustrations into futures for their communities and themselves. Making Connections – Citizen’s and the City Working Together to Better Coordinate the Delivery of City Services, Lula Bright, Ashaki Goodall, and Michael Patterson Making Connections ensures that the District government improves its neighborhoods by establishing a regularly scheduled forum for Advisory Neighborhood Commissions, the Mayor’s Office of Community Relations and Services, and the D.C. Departments of Public Works and Transportation to meet with citizens to collaboratively identify and resolve citizens’ complaints and requests for City services. Bikes 4 Brains, Nancy Shia The Bikes 4 Brains project will identify underperforming students at H.D. Cooke Elementary School to improve academic performance through awarding bicycles for academic achievement. Through the help of the Washington Area Bicyclists Association, Bikes 4 Brains will match each student with a tutor and/or mentor. When a student’s academic performance improves, he/she will receive a bicycle, presented with a bit of fanfare at the school, to let others know they too can earn a bicycle.
Nalle, Plummer, and Davis Alumni Association, Phyliss Stewart Thompson Studies have shown that community involvement in schools help to improve quality and accountability. Under this project an association was created to promote alumni associations and strengthen their involvement in three local elementary schools. The association was created with several goals including: to provide a brief history of three District of Columbia Public Elementary Schools, to provide information about the alumni association, to promote activities of the alumni association, to solicit additional members for the alumni association, to encourage other district residents to start elementary school alumni associations, and to show how residents can support children in the District of Columbia Public Schools. Informed Parents Make Better Decisions, H. Lawrence Clark The purpose of this project is to assist parents in making informed decisions regarding the future educational possibilities of their children. Parents should have access to the data DCPS uses when evaluating school and student progress such as No Child Left Behind and the DC Comprehensive Assessment System. The District of Columbia S.M.A.R.T Parents Community Resource Center, Lillie May Jackson The District of Columbia S.M.A.R.T Parents Community Resource Center will provide a specialized training facility for the Office of Community Partnerships and act as a principle partner addressing the issues that families face. The Center will teach parental engagement activities, building knowledgeable bridges between families and schools, as part of the overall strategic reform efforts. Adding It Up, Robert Vinson Brannum, Jeanne Konicki Adding It Up is an alternative education guide book that is a vehicle for after school providers and parents to conduct fun and engaging activities for youth that increases the proficiency level of students in math at the 4th grade. DEBUTANTE 2008, Jessica Everett Homeless teens residing in family shelters throughout the District of Columbia often lack exposure to positive social events such as a debutante ball/cotillion, or a high school prom. This project will provide homeless teens who reside at homeless family shelters with the opportunity to participate in a debutante ball/cotillion. All of the participants’ attire, accessories, and transportation will be donated free of charge. Prior to the actual event, participants will take part in team building and self-worth activities. All Work, No Play – Has created a chaotic village!, Joyce Paul The All Work, No Play project will address the absence of recreational facilities and social activities in the Truxton Circle/Shaw neighborhood of Ward 5. The project has developed a Concerned Coalition (Friends) for the New York Avenue Playground Area (CNYAP) to create an intergenerational year-round, state-of-the-art recreational facility with a Family and Youth Development Center. The project will concentrate on the intergenerational gap in the Truxton Circle/Shaw neighborhood while providing social and recreational activities for senior and youth residents in the neighborhood. Sister Action, Sister Strength (SASS), Ericka Ransom The mission of SASS is to involve young women in personal and political development through an exploration of cultural identity, community organization and relationship building. SASS will consist of workshops, social activities, field trips, community action projects, and individual projects and peer education. Raise the Bar, Young Savvy, Cherise Matheson Young Savvy is a professional network for women (ages 18-30). Its mission is to provide professional and personal development to help young adult women realize their full potential and improve their quality of life. Young Savvy will offer leadership development, networking opportunities and access to resources. The goal of the program is to develop young women for a successful transition into work and life.
God's Chosen Home, Carolyn Mitchell Chosen Home is a home for pregnant teenagers who have been referred by local churches, social services, courts and public hospitals. Chosen Home will provide pregnant teens with an opportunity to learn life skills, attend school/work, and grow with their child for 9-12 months. During the mother’s time at Chosen Home, she will be taught skills such as: prenatal care, child care, nutrition, budgeting and personal care. In addition, the Home will provide childcare, religious support and a referral program for fathers to assist in raising their child. Gentlemen Incorporated, Juneous Petijohn Gentlemen Incorporated program seeks to establish a safe and confidential environment where young Black high school males (ages 13-17) in Ward 7 can develop positive behavioral skills and knowledge to prevent teen pregnancy. Too many young males lack the information and skills to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases and unintended pregnancies. The goal of this program is to reach out to high school males to develop them as leaders in their homes and community. The program will introduce a partner with instructors to teach a number of courses over a twelve week period to young males. Some of these courses include: Self-Esteem, HIV\AIDS and other Sexually Transmitted Diseases, Fatherhood, Birth Control, Decision Making, and Goal Setting. Economic and Human Development Metropolitan Community Reinvestment Corporation, Incorporated: Low Income Families Rebuilding Their Lives One Brick at a Time, Theresa Sule Metropolitan Community Reinvestment Corporation will assist low income families become self sufficient by focusing on four areas which include: affordable low income housing, affordable childcare, personal development, and workforce development. A Process for Community Engagement around Unemployment and Underemployment, Villareal Johnson Community leaders in Ward 7 recognize that the overall health and wellness of Ward 7 residents is being adversely affected by unemployment and underemployment. The project is designed to bring attention to this issue, engage residents, connect residents to jobs, provide job training and educational opportunities while creating a process to stimulate and replicate civic participation. South Capitol & Atlantic Vagrant Initiative, Theresa Jones On the corner of South Capitol and Atlantic Street SE, shoppers have complained of aggressive panhandling and harassment. The goal of this project is to clean up the corner and assist panhandlers in finding gainful employment and other recreational activities. Life Skills for Living, Antoinette Lawson This program will serve fourteen families from the recently closed DC Village Homeless Shelter who returned periodically to homeless shelters due to difficulty in finding suitable housing. Life Skills for Living will assist clients, in developing the necessary life skills to overcome their current situations, and maintain a stable independent life style. Clean Break Whole Again Re-Entry Program, Anthony Muhammad The Clean Break Whole Again Re-Entry project was designed to prevent Black males from returning to prison. The project has a faith based curriculum that focuses on creating an environment conducive to learning about self. After completing the program participants will be able to develop the behavioral skills to prevent the return to prison. District of Columbia Vocational Academy (DC VOCA), Patricia Brown-Daniels Many of the young adults in the District have faced incarceration, unemployment and other conditions that have prevented them from learning a trade and developing a meaningful career for themselves. The District of Columbia Vocational Academy will focus on equipping young adults (ages 21-35) with the skills necessary to become carpenters, electricians, plumbers, or cosmetologists. United Stance for an Undeniable Struggle (US 4 US), Silas Grant United Stance for an Undeniable Struggle will assist ex-offenders charged and/or convicted of drug distribution in the District be able to translate their “street life” skills to a legitimate career path. This project will establish a training program which will cover topics such as: language development, public speaking, resume building, etiquette, networking, and entrepreneurial development. The Community Housing Development Organization for Family Self-Sufficiency and Family Preservation, Inc., Ronald Sykes The Community Housing Development Organization for Family Self-Sufficiency and Family Preservation, Inc will assist families living in substandard housing conditions to find better housing opportunities. The organization will develop transitional housing for homeless families, and develop three types of affordable housing: affordable housing homeownership, affordable rental housing, and affordable cooperative housing. Sharing Our Strength, Diane Williams Sharing Our Strength will create a state-of-the-art facility that will offer the necessary tools catered to the needs of women who have been incarcerated. It is hoped that with the necessary tools inmates would be empowered with information and resources that would transform their experience toward responsible and productive lives. Our ultimate goal is to break the costly cycle of recidivism.
Bridging the Gap between Unemployment and Green Industry in DC , Karen Brumbaugh and Charles Turner Bridging the Gap will focus on designing a training curriculum for unemployed and/or low skilled workers to have a sustainable career in the growing green economy in the District of Columbia. The training curriculum will teach and certify workers in the area of: green roofing, energy efficiency in buildings, hazmat cleanup and basic construction. By the completion of the training program, unemployed and/or low skilled workers will have a skill set that can be applied toward a career in the green economy.
D.C. Nightlife Summit, Mital Gandhi A safe and vibrant nightlife is in the interest of the entire city in order to protect patrons and citizens alike as well as contribute to economic growth. The purpose of the D.C. Nightlife Summit is to create a forum where nightlife issues can be discussed with specific emphasis on nightlife safety in the District of Columbia’s restaurants, nightclubs, and taverns. Multifamily Apartment Managers: Proactive Partners in Community Policing, Barbara Brown and Will Warren Multifamily Apartment Managers is a pilot program that is brings multifamily unit managers, the community and the government together in order to build better communication in the seventh police district. The program improves community livability by training managers to develop a greater understanding of their role and service for keeping neighborhoods safe and all involved better informed. Also, by promoting a common understanding of what it takes to keep a community healthy, the opportunities for effective problem solving increase.
Virtual Trails Project, Lonell Johnson II DC History is no longer a mandatory course within the high schools of Washington, DC; therefore, the history of the District of Columbia is being lost as generations advance. This project will provide a virtual tour website of historical trails based upon the current DC Heritage/Neighborhood trails.
Woodridge Community Development Corporation, Jamie Fearer The Woodridge Community Development Corporation will create a partnership among residents, property owners, and business community—all of which are committed to creating a flourishing commercial and retail environment in the Woodridge, South Central, and Langdon neighborhoods. This will be accomplished by supporting existing businesses, attracting new businesses, and encouraging community entrepreneurship and a local workforce. Single Member District Directory (SMDD), Janae Grant The Single Member District (SMD) Directory provides information on non-residential entities that provide services within SMD 5A11. The directory will catalogue service providers, neighborhood organizations, and institutions by single member district. In addition, the directory will provide community information on market addresses with a single member district indicator and developmental opportunities for planning and growth. The ultimate goal of the project is to have the SMDD the directory of choice for District residents. Deanwood Abandoned Property Project, Sherrie Lawson The District of Columbia Office of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs have been overwhelmed with abandoned properties across the District of Columbia. It does not have the manpower or resources to identify abandoned properties in every community. Deanwood Abandoned Property Project was designed to address the abandoned properties in the Deanwood neighborhood. This project will create a centralized user-friendly system for Deanwood Residents to report and follow the status of actions taken toward vacant properties. This system will assist residents in eliminating abandoned or uninhabitable properties– creating a cleaner and safer community. Sayles Place: Repair, Renew, and Return, Jacalyn Lashley-Ward Sayles Place is a public housing development that has suffered from poor living conditions as a result of decades of disinvestment. The goal of Sayles Place: Repair, Renew, and Return is to transform Sayles Place into a revitalized mixed-income community and to acquire funds from several District sources to stop the foreclosure on Sayles Place. Re-Building DC for the 21st Century: The H2O Connection, Vandana Sareen, Irv Sheffey, Paul Schwartz Re-Building DC is a project designed to provide new approaches and solutions to the District’s water needs. The project will demonstrate how re-purposing DC WASA’s $2.4 to $4.0 billion funding stream would not only better solve the CSO problem but other critical water issues as well. Claiming Your Seat at the Table: Identifying Opportunities for Enhanced Public Engagement through the Planned Unit Development Process, Yvette Rector, Ryan Velasco Claiming Your Seat at the Table is a project designed to: examine the advantages and disadvantages of the current Planned Unit Development (PUD) process; highlight various ways for citizens of the District of Columbia to become more knowledgeable about CBAs and the PUD process; and ensure citizens tools and resources to secure an equal place at the negotiating table. Communities Understanding Resources Better on Petworth(CURB), Dacia Russell CURB on Petworth is a community assets and resources assessment. The mission is to catalog the ever-changing and expanding resource base of Petworth through a process accessible to and adaptable by community residents and activists. CURB on Petworth will explore and delineate the full expanse of Petworth's Resources across three focus clusters: Human Assets, Personal Skills Inventory, and Cultural Mapping; Institutional, Associational and Infrastructure Assets; and Previous Efforts and Investments.
Seeds of Health and Wellness Healthy Lifestyles Program (S.O.H.W., Rhonda Hamilton & Kristie McComb This comprehensive healthy lifestyles program is focused on increasing access to fresh produce and teaching practical skills around diet, nutrition and exercise to low-income families in Southwest DC. By encouraging students and their families to make healthier food choices we hope to introduce tactics which may slow the rate of childhood obesity.
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