Measuring Community Change Mary Emery: SDSU Milan Wall: Heartland Center for Leadership Development Liz Weaver: Tamarack Tom Kelly: Anne E. Casey Foundation

Purpose Several year effort with multiple stakeholders looking at what we can learn about successful community change Many community change initiatives Lots of investment in community change Do these initiatives make a difference? – How do we know? – Measuring change is difficult

Hierarchy of Community Impacts Prepared by Milan Wall, Co-Director Heartland Center for Leadership Development

Why Another Evaluation Model? Designed for the community leader Scientific jargon is minimized Is easy to utilize Is not time-consuming Allows for the assessment of impacts from the start of implementation

Hierarchy of Community Impacts

Hierarchy of Community Impacts A Leadership Development Program Example Activities – Has a program been created? – How many people are engaged? Outputs – What is the program producing? – Are participants attending?

Hierarchy of Community Impacts A Leadership Development Program Example Commitments – What are the graduates saying and what are they doing? Expressed Commitments Acted Upon Commitments Outcomes – What community betterment has resulted from the graduates’ actions?

Hierarchy of Community Impacts A Leadership Development Program Example Indicators of Systemic Change – What long-term changes have been affected? has the pool of people engaged in community leadership roles become more diversified? Are there more young people or people of color, or at least new faces among emerging and engaged leaders?

Thirteen Cities. One Goal. Reduce Poverty.

The Complex Nature of Poverty “ Poverty is a complex issue. There is no single cause and no one solution. Its successful reduction, and ideally its eradication, require a set of linked interventions undertaken by all orders of government working in collaboration with communities.” Poverty Policy Sherri Torjman, Caledon Institute of Social Policy October 2008

Vibrant Communities An experiment designed to test a specific way to address the complex realities of poverty through local level action. Theory of Change: Guided by 5 principles & assisted by extra supports provided by national sponsors – local organizations and leaders could revitalize poverty reduction efforts in their communities and generate significantly improved outcomes.

Part One – Exploring Principles The Communities

The Approach

Personal Assets Physical Assets Social Assets Human Assets Financial Assets Inner resources Self-awareness Self-esteem and self- confidence Hope and motivation Basic material goods and services Emergency supports Food Housing Transportation Dependent care Relationships and Networks Civic participation Support networks Income, Savings and Sources of Financial Security Employment income Non-employment income Savings and financial assets Reduced debt/costs Skills, knowledge, education & health Health Life skills Financial literacy Education Employment Skills Sustainable Livelihoods Approach – Assets Pentagon

Four Levels of Community Outcomes Policy and Systems Change Increased Community Capacity Increased Community Engagement Decreased Poverty

Raise the profile of poverty. Build a constituency for change. Encourage collaborative ways of working. Begin to shift systems underlying poverty. Contribute to the asset-building efforts for a large number of people. Working Collaboratively, Communities can …

VC Success Factors Influential and credible convener(s) Cross-sector, connected leadership table Challenging community aspiration Clearly articulated purpose and approach High degree of resident mobilization Research which informs the work

Want to learn about Vibrant Communities Canada and its work?

Tom Kelly Annie E. Casey Foundation September 20, 2011 Measuring Community Change

10 Implementation sites White Center Oakland Denver Des Moines Milwaukee Indianapolis Louisville Hartford Providence San Antonio to 2010

Critical Success Questions Can positive outcomes be achieved for large numbers of children and families in a neighborhood of concentrated poverty? Can impact at the neighborhood level influence local leaders, organizations, systems, and funding? Can this work be sustained? Can this work be scaled? 22

Achieving Dual-Generation Results Site Strategies Programs and Initiatives Technical Assistance Co-investments Families have increased earnings and income Families have increased assets Children are healthy and prepared to succeed in school Economic Opportunities Social Networks Effective Services & Supports WHAT IT TAKES TO ACHIEVE RESULTS Broad agreement on results Data, performance measurement, and managing to results Partnerships among residents and institutions Effective services & programs, linked to policy Leveraging the resources of other funders and systems Resident leadership 23

The Stages of Systemic Change Beverly Parsons InSites 24 Pre- dominance New Structures Transition Exploration Awareness Maintenance of Old Systems Key Elements of Change Vision Public & Political Support Networking Teaching & Learning Roles & Responsibilities Policy Alignment

Core Capacity Matrix Business as Usual Awareness & Demand ExploringRefiningSustaining Data for learning & accountability Resident leadership, participation, and voice Partnerships with key institutions Shared vision & accountability Policy & systems change Implementation of effective strategies Financing and resources 25

Annual Assessment of Site Capacities

Process of Core Capacity Measurement Common cross-site understanding of stages, key elements (capacities), and definitions Individualized indicators based on local context for each capacity and stage Participatory reflection and self-assessment of key stakeholders/actors (facilitated by evaluators) Change measured against local baseline 27

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