ACTIVITY: TREASURE HUNT

By: Andre Carpenter, Jeff Chase, Stephen Hicks, & Tabatha VanDyke

FINDING RESOURCES IN YOUR COMMUNITY

INTRODUCTION

Why is community mapping important?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ssn1aX3kxbE

EDUCATION BUDGET CUTS

NORTH CAROLINA:

The Governor's proposed cuts for 2010-11 follow a $790.4 million reduction in 2009-10 and are on top of the $180.5 million in cuts for 2010-11 that were approved last year by the General Assembly as part of the State's two-year budget. Combined, those cuts total $960.7 million.

http://www.ncpublicschools.org/newsroom/news/2009 10/20100423-01

EDUCATION BUDGET CUTS (contd.)

SOUTH CAROLINA: 

The nation’s economic downturn – and resulting state revenue shortfalls – meant severe budget cuts totaling $387 million for schools and school districts in 2009. Although federal stabilization funds provided some relief for 2010, along with a state resolution allowing more fiscal flexibility, districts still faced more than $300 million in cuts for the next school year and had to use reserve funds, cut jobs, furlough staff, increase class sizes and trim programs. 

http://ed.sc.gov/news/more.cfm?articleID=1403

EDUCATION BUDGET CUTS (contd.)

GEORGIA:

Georgia cut state funding for K-12 education for FY 2011 by $403 million or 5.5 percent. The cut has led the state’s board of education to exempt local school districts from class size requirements to reduce costs.

http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=1214

EDUCATION BUDGET CUTS (contd.)

VIRGINIA:

Virginia’s $700 million in cuts for the coming biennium include the state’s share of an array of school district operating and capital expenses and funding for class-size reduction in kindergarten through third grade. In addition, a $500 million reduction in state funding for some 13,000 support staff such as janitors, school nurses, and school psychologists from last year’s budget was made permanent.

http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=1214

FAMILY ECONOMIC CRISIS

13.2 million children under the age of 18 are living below the federal poverty level.

Approximately 2.2 million foreclosures will affect 2 million children in the next 2 years, identifying an increase in homeless children and families.

Increase in free or reduced lunch. Increased demands on psychological

and social work services.

SCHOOL CHALLENGES

Reduced funding. Reduced staff. Lack of organized coordination of

services.

WHAT IS COMMUNITY ASSET MAPPING?

A process by which people become more self-reliant and develop stronger social relationships through utilization of community resources (Jasek-Rysdahl, 2001 in Griffin & Farris, 2010).

FUNDAMENTAL COMPONENT

Asset Mapping is a drawing of a map of what is valuable in communities and is also a list of compiled, existing resources that can be used by all stakeholders (Griffin & Farris, 2010)

THREE LEVELS OF ASSETS

• Gifts, skills, and capacities of INDIVIDUALS living within the community.

• CITIZEN ORGANIZATIONAL ASSOCIATIONS through which people come together to pursue common goals.

• INSTITUTIONAL organizations such as businesses, local government, hospitals, human services agencies.

BENEFITS OF COMMUNITY MAPPING

• Help address or prevent problems such as violence, child abuse, and substance abuse as well as promoting and enhancing healthy families and communities.

• Not only FREE, but provides resources for schools without program funding.

• Lessening the load of school counselors while providing resources for students and families

RATIONALE FOR SCHOOL COUNSELORS’ USE

• Engages members of the school and community in working together to identify resources readily available to them

• Supports COLLABORATION, an essential role in locating resources.

• Complies with the ASCA National Model (2005) standards of school counselors’ leadership roles and the process of collaboration and cooperation with community.

FOUR-STEP APPROACH FOR CREATING A COMMUNITY ASSET MAP

• Develop a multidisciplinary team.

• Examine and assess a current list of identified resources,

services, and programs, and identify new ones.

• Contact individual and community resources.

• Develop and maintain a community resource guide, and

map the assets

(Griffin & Farris, 2010)

MULTIDISCIPLINARY TEAM

• Develop a team of school and community

stakeholders to help develop, implement, and

maintain the community asset map.

• Team must be multicultural competent and not hold

negative viewpoints and stereotypes.

• Do not overlook parents as potential resources

(Griffin & Farris, 2010)

MULTIDISPLINARY TEAM (contd.)

Cultural Brokers:

• Those who are cultural experienced and maybe respected within the community

• They also may have insight into unlisted resources that families use in the community

(Griffin & Farris, 2010)

Identify Current Resources, Services, and Identify New Ones

• Start with identified referral sources in and outside the school

• Ask everyday contacts

• The United Way is a great resource to locate other resources

• Individuals with talents and skills

CONTACT INDIVIDUAL & COMMUNITY

• Contact those resources that you have just

identified

• Go visit and investigate resource

Develop and Maintain a Community Asset Map, and Map the Assets

PROCESS & SUMMARY

STRENGTHS & RESOURCES

Asset mapping provides information about the strengths and resources of a community and can help uncover solutions. Once community strengths and resources are inventoried and depicted in a map, you can more easily think about how to build on these assets to address community needs and improve health. Finally, asset mapping promotes community involvement, ownership, and empowerment.

ASSETS INCLUDE:

Improves the quality of community life.

A physical structure or place. For example, a school, hospital, or church. Maybe a library, recreation center, or social club.

A business that provides jobs and supports the local economy.

Associations of citizens. For example, a Neighborhood Watch or a Parent Teacher Association.

Local private, public, and nonprofit institutions or organizations.

COMMUNITY MEMBERS

COMMUNITY MEMBERS

ASSOCIATIONS OF CITIZENS

COMMUNITY SOURCES AVAILABLE:

• The yellow pages.

• Local neighborhood/city directories, published for your community.

• Bulletin boards.

• Lists of neighborhood businesses. Ask your Chamber of Commerce.

• Lists of organizations, which are not generally published. Community resource guides produced by local organizations may be helpful.

• The local newspaper.

• Your friends and colleagues.

ADVANTAGES:

Builds on existing community assets

Mapping the inventory creates a visual depiction of existing and lacking assets

Data can be used to raise awareness about the availability of assets, develop or improve services and programs, or to apply for funding

Can generate a lot of community participation

HOORAY! POST-IT ACTIVITY

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR YOUR ATTENTION & PARTICIPATION

REFERENCES:

Berkowitz, B. & Wadud, E. (2003). Identifying community assets and resources. Community Toolbox-University of Kansas Work

Group on Health Promotion and Community Development. Retrieved on July 22, 2010 on

www.healthpolicy.ucla.edu/healthdata/ttt_prog21.pdf

Griffin, Dana; Farris, Amy. (2010, June 1). School counselors and collaboration: finding resources through community asset mapping

The Free Library. (2010). Retrieved July 22, 2010 from

http://www.thefreelibrary.com/School counselors and collaboration: finding resources through...-a0229067304

Jasek-Rysdahl, K. (2001). Applying Sen.'s capabilities framework to neighborhoods: Using local asset maps to deepen our

understanding of well-being. Review of Social Economy, 59, 313-329.

North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (2010). Public schools at risk under governor’s proposed budget.

http://www.ncpublicschools.org/newsroom/news/200910/20100423-01

South Carolina Department of Education (2010). State’s severe economic recession, damaging budget cuts lend list of top

education stories. http://ed.sc.gov/news/more.cfm?articleID=1403

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (2010). An update on state budget cuts: at least 45 states have imposed cuts that hurt

valuable residents and the economy. http://www.cbpp.org/cms/?fa=view&id=1214