Recruiting and Retaining: The 12 Sectors of the Community Wheel Erica Manahan & Amber Allen

Why Recruit and Retain? Members/Stakeholders are important: They share information and resources They ensure that multiple populations with multiple strategies are reached They provide more opportunities to achieve and claim success with the positive outcomes You never know who your champion may be

What Does Membership Look Like? Core planning team Active coalition member Project focused members

12 Sectors of the Community Wheel Youth Parents Business Community Media These are just an umbrella with many potential members that fit under each category Give example for each if possible *Youth-Harder to r&r *Media-Harder to r&r

12 Sectors of the Community Wheel Schools Youth-Serving Organizations Law Enforcement Agencies Religious or Fraternal Organizations *Schools r&r *Law Enforcement r&r * Religious r&r

12 Sectors of the Community Wheel Civic and Volunteer Groups Healthcare Professionals State, Local or Tribal Governmental Agencies with Expertise in the Substance Abuse Field Other Organizations Involved in Substance Abuse Reduction *Civic Volunteer Groups R&R

Recruiting

What is Recruiting? The action of seeking to increase membership by seeking new members to a coalition

Why do you need to Recruit? 12 community sectors More hands can cover more ground New ideas/perspectives Decrease burn out More support 12 sectors-well rounded group New ideas-each person has their own view and a reason for being there Decrease Burn Out- not same people doing the same events over & over, feel they are doing thing out of duty vs. wanting to, (if I don’t do it no one else will) gives people breaks -more support, more members more support for your mission

Have a Recruiting Plan Circle of interest to the problem

When should you start recruiting? As soon as the coalition starts forming Recruiting is a constant Incorporate recruitment/engagement in all efforts. Never underestimate when and where you can recruit coalition members

Recruiting Start with people you know Sharing your coalition’s messages on a regular basis Talk to Stakeholders Emerging Leaders People you know are in your sphere of influence ongoing consistency with the community will make recruiting new members easier You can do this by having membership info and how to become engage at events your coalition already puts on (Take Backs, alternative activities) Ex. Stakeholders most affected. There is an increase of marijuana use of high school students in your area contact the school to join your coalition to discuss this issue. Keep your message consistent, easy to remember, and for a broad audience (Examples) Emerging Leaders-Youth

Hardest Sectors to Recruit Youth Media Schools Law Enforcement Religious Organizations Civic & Volunteer Groups

How to Recruit Personal contacts (Primary Way) Set up booths at local fairs, carnivals & festivals Newspaper Sphere of Influence campaign PSA on local radio or TV station Ask current members to give presentations to another group they’re involved in Social media Personal contacts: Ex. Your neighbor works for the school Social Media: FB, Twitter, Linkedin, Booths: examples fourth of July Newspaper: show example in newspaper PSA: Show Youtube Give short presentation on your coalition: Ex. Chamber of Comerence

Recruiting-Membership Card Have sheet for members to sign-up and check what they would like to do in the coalition -Would you like: have many options well people could see everyone fit in. -

Recruiting-Postcards -Have postcards with how to become involved and the history of the coalition -facts that will catch attention -Can handout at local events.

Recruiting-Rack Card -Resource rack cards with your coalition info on the front

Recruiting-Business Card Business Cards -Front just info -Back with all the info to becmoe a member

Recruiting-Newspaper Recruiting through the Newspaper -has mission, date and time

Recruiting-Mailer

Recruiting-Sphere of Influence “Prescription drug overdose deaths are now leading cause of accidental deaths, overtaking auto accidents for the first time and exceeding the number of cocaine, heroin, and meth deaths combined. Protect your loved ones by talking to your family and friends about the dangers of medication abuse.” >>>Make your voice heard and join the Lawrence County Prevention Team to make a difference.

Recruiting-Flyer

Social Media Recruiting Facebook: ADAPT Twitter: Jefferson City CDFY Twitter: Northland Coalition LinkedIn: Dover Coalition for Youth Circle of San Antonio

Places to Recruit Grocery stores High schools/universities Churches Recreation centers/community centers Performing art centers Libraries Drug stores Doctors’ offices/hospitals/health clinics Grocery Stores have community boards High Schools (Youth, School) Universities (Students, professors, community members) Churches (access to community members, religious leaders) Recreation Centers (Youth, youth serving organizations, community members) Performing Art Centers Post Offices (Access to whole community ) Drug Stores (Access to whole community/partnerships for Drug Take Back) Health Providers (Healthcare CW, community members) Libraries (all community members)

Things to Consider when Recruiting Awareness of the issue What size of area does your coalition cover urban vs. rural Check who you need in the community wheel What is the best type of recruitment material to reach who are looking for Cultural competency -Each person has a different awareness level of the issue -Urban pockets of groups, rural easy access to whole community -seeing gaps in your coalition cw -different materials affect each person differently ex. Youth=twitter newspaper=parents -When you are recruiting make sure cultural competency is involved in what ever way you chose to recruit

Recruiting Research Members were more likely to have attended a greater percentage of coalition meetings in the past year, and more likely to have spent higher number of hours doing coalition work outside of scheduled meetings when they perceived the coalition board to be more inclusive to it members. Inclusive-treating all new members as equal. Even brand new recruited members should feel they can speak up with ideas on the issues. You may have to help new members at first learn how to funnel their ideas to the coalitions goals and strategic plan. Research from 2009 CADCA

Retaining We just learned that engaging and involving a range of partners is an essential part of prevention planning. You cannot have a comprehensive, community-based approach to prevention in isolation.

Retaining Strategies Have coalition structure Vision and mission statements, goals, strategic action plans, roles and expectations for members Chair, Co-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer with regular change over Conduct regular member orientations to the coalition, its function and its activities Offer member job descriptions

Sample Job Descriptions

Sample Job Descriptions

Sample Job Descriptions

Sample Job Descriptions

Retaining Strategies Hold effective meetings Offer an agenda and minutes Guide discussion and stay on task Send email updates if unable to attend Ensure the meeting time is beneficial for the majority Seek feedback from members on meeting and action plans

Retaining Strategies Identify personal and agency needs and attempt to accommodate them when able Designate a need and place for each individual/agency Create a commitment letter/MOU Use DEC training in Carthage as an example Older members reported more often than younger members that they talked during coalition meetings.

Retaining Strategies Provide meaningful tasks suited to individual interests and abilities Balance being useful but not overworked Distribute the workload Keep activities fresh and relevant Many hands make light work! Members of coalitions that had been around for a long time went to fewer meetings & were less likely to talk during those meetings.

Retaining Strategies Offer formal and informal trainings for members to become better educated and more connected with the problem Recognize coalition members for their involvement and dedication Tangible rewards like drawings Personal thank you letters Newspaper/social media shout out

Levels of Involvement Collaboration Coordination Cooperation “Let’s work together on a comprehensive plan to address the issue; our missions overlap.” “Let’s partner on an event.” “I’ll support your program and you’ll support me, or we can co-sponsor one.” Collaboration Coordination “Let’s talk and share information.” Cooperation “You do your thing; we’ll do ours.” As you go up the stairs, there is increased risk of involvement! Individuals will want to and need to be involved at different levels. Networking No Involvement

Hardest Sectors to Retain Youth Issues Turnover Keeping their interest Solutions Treat them as equal partners/members Value their input and make them a part of ALL stages of prevention Schedule meetings when youth can attend

Hardest Sectors to Retain Media Issues Lack of interest Being too busy Solutions Find an individual that is a stakeholder or is affected by the issue List them as a sponsor frequently Utilize their media source when able

Hardest Sectors to Retain Schools Issues Pulled in many directions Health/substance abuse isn’t the main focus Solutions Focus on educational impact Provide research-based best practices Make communication succinct and address the educational mission -Improved academic achievement and graduation rates, decreased absenteeism

Hardest Sectors to Retain Law enforcement Issues Difficult schedules Lack of interest Solutions Focus on enforcement issues, including decreasing crime and improving safety Increase positive community image

Hardest Sectors to Retain Religious Organizations Issues WIIFM? Already over-involved Solutions Maintain a connection to faith initiatives Show the problems firsthand with tangible solutions Value their time and desire for involvement

Hardest Sectors to Retain Civic and volunteer groups Issues Often approached for involvement in groups Solutions Partnership expands quality and quantity of volunteer community Collaborate with their projects as well Offer trainings and combined recruitment efforts (greater exposure for both)

In closing… Your coalition members are the lifeblood of your prevention work and of the change that can happen in your community! You need them for their voice and abilities. They need you for your prevention knowledge and guidance. Offer trainings and combined recruitment efforts (greater exposure for both)

Resources Coalitions Work CADCA Community Toolbox http://coalitionswork.com/ CADCA www.cadca.org www.cadca.org/resources/detail/ strengthening-partnerships-toolkit Community Toolbox http://ctb.ku.edu/