PEACE to add five indigent health clinics in Polk County
2011 | Healthcare Provisions
Lakeland, FL – PEACE has been working towards the opening of five indigent health clinics in Polk County. The first clinic opened in 2007 and serves over 5,000 patients annually. On May 9, 2011, the second clinic, Winter Haven Primary Care Clinic, began accepting patients and is expected to see the same number of patients annually.
CLOUT reaches out to unbanked households
2011 | Economic Opportunity
Louisville, KY – As a result of CLOUT’s work, Mayor Jerry Abramson agreed to convene local banks and credit unions to develop an initiative to offer more affordable and accessible products and services to reach out to the 29,000 unbanked households in the Louisville area (i.e., families without a checking or savings account and are likely to pay high transaction fees for services like check cashing or exorbitant interest on loans). The “Bank On Louisville” initiative was officially launched in July 2010. There are sixteen financial institutions participating. The initiative’s goal for its first year was to open 500 accounts. In the first three months, with just half of the institutions reporting, 366 new accounts had been opened, with an average balance of $1000.
CLOUT is also working to secure a statewide interest rate cap of 36% on payday loans, which currently charge approximately 400% APR in Kentucky. Payday loans are small, short-term loans that are intended to cover a borrower’s expenses until his/her next payday, but regularly have a “trapping” affect where the borrower has to repeatedly renew the loan and pay associated fees every two weeks or take out loans to cover interest on previous loans.
Early literacy program expanded
2010 | Jacksonville
Jacksonville, FL – In 2010, ICARE secured commitments from the Early Learning Coalition of Duval (ELC) and the Jacksonville Children’s Commission to expand access to a high-quality early literacy program known as Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten (VPK) for working low-income families. This included $2.1 million in funding to provide a full-day Pre-K for 500 four-year-olds. In its first year, 168 kids were removed from the wait list and placed in VPK. Duval County Public Schools also agreed to work with the ELC to track VPK students throughout their years in the district, providing data-driven accountability.
Increased access to pre-kindergarten programming in Charlottesville
2010 | Charlottesville
Charlottesville, VA – IMPACT made steady progress on education issues at their March 2010 Nehemiah Action. The Charlottesville City School Board and Albemarle County Bright Stars officials agreed to increase access to public Pre-Kindergarten (Pre-K) education for local low-income three- and four-year-olds by ensuring that 85-95% of children enrolled in public Pre-K are low-income. Pre-K refers to formal educational programming that has proven to prepare children to better succeed in kindergarten when properly implemented. In addition, the City of Charlottesville raised the total number of three-year-old classes from three to five, beginning in the 2010-2011 school year. Albemarle County maintained funding for all existing Pre-K programs and added one four-year-old classroom in spite of potential budget cuts.
CLOUT plugs “school to prison pipeline”
2010 | Crime and Drug Reform
Louisville, KY – In 2010, CLOUT turned their attention to the growing phenomenon known as the “school to prison pipeline” – a set of practices that ultimately push kids out of education toward the criminal justice system and eventually into prison. At CLOUT’s March 2010 Nehemiah Action, Jefferson County Attorney Mike O’Connell and the judges of the Jefferson County Juvenile Court committed their support to the implementation of a restorative justice approach in local juvenile courts. Plans include “family group conferencing” to deal with select juvenile court cases that will hold the offender more accountable, allow for restitution, and avoid incarceration. Paid and volunteer staff have been trained and its use with juvenile court cases will begin soon. Mr. O’Connell also committed to discontinue the practice of referring all school-related offenses to court.
Also at the 2010 Action, Jefferson County Public Schools Superintendent Sheldon Berman committed his support to the Restorative discipline approach in the school system. Six JCPS administrators and three leaders of the Jefferson County Teachers Association (JCTA), along with CLOUT leaders, traveled to Baltimore and Pennsylvania to visit model schools and receive initial training. JCPS sent three administrators and JCTA sent three leaders back for an additional five days of training. They, in turn, will be training other JCPS personnel who will be working in elementary and middle schools.
Juvenile Drug Court expanded in Dayton
2010 | Crime and Drug Reform
Dayton, OH – As a result of LEAD’s April 2010 Nehemiah Action, County Commissioner Dan Foley partnered with Juvenile Drug Court Judge Anthony Capizzi in securing $250,000 to expand the Montgomery County Juvenile Drug Court by 50%, adding 50 slots which will serve approximately 100 more youth per year in substance abuse treatment. Drug Courts operate under a specialized model in which the criminal justice system, mental health, and treatment communities work together to help non-violent offenders treat their addictions and become productive citizens, and has proven to lower recidivism and tax spending on crime when properly implemented.
CAJE finds funding for very low income households
2010 | Affordable Housing
Evansville, IN – As a result of CAJE’s 2010 Nehemiah Action, where 1,200 people were present, the Mayor of Evansville pledged to fund an Affordable Housing Trust Fund in the amount of $550,000 in 2010, at least $500,000 in 2011, and $1million each year following through a dedicated revenue source. Affordable Housing Trust Funds, once capitalized, are designed to provide communities with funds to build, preserve, and rehabilitate housing that are affordable for extremely and very low income households. By the end of 2010, twenty three low-income homes had been built.
BOLD Justice brings mortgage modification
2010 | Affordable Housing
Broward County, FL – In 2010, Broward County had 9,433 homes in foreclosure and an additional 17,961 in pre-foreclosure. BOLD Justice worked with the County administrator to invite NACA, an organization that has modified over 100,000 home loans nationwide, into Broward County to conduct mortgage modifications. This resulted in a region-wider event in August 2010 held in Palm Beach where on-the-spot mortgage modifications were performed on 3,544 homes.
Impact fees go to affordable housing
2010 | Affordable Housing
West Palm Beach, FL – Throughout the fall of 2008, PEACE worked closely with the County’s advisory board on affordable housing issues to come up with viable funding recommendations for a locally funded Affordable Housing Trust Fund. Affordable Housing Trust Funds, once capitalized, are designed to provide communities with funds to build, preserve, and rehabilitate housing that are affordable for extremely and very low income households. The Commission on Affordable Housing recommended utilizing the buyout money from the County’s Mandatory Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance and the interest earned on impact fees to fund the Affordable Housing Trust Fund. As a strong statement of support, 175 PEACE leaders attended the January 2009 meeting of the Board of County Commissioners where the Commission on Affordable Housing presented these recommendations. In April 2009, 950 people attended PEACE’s Nehemiah Action where Commissioners Koons, Santamaria, and Vana committed to support a resolution that will dedicate these two funding sources to the County’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund. By October 2010, $1.037 million had been allocated to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund. Starting in October 2014, 50% of the interest earned on impact fees will be used to pay for the impact fees of approximately 400 units of affordable housing each year, an ongoing revenue source estimated at $1.9 million.
PEACE battles wage-theft
2010 | Economic Opportunity
West Palm Beach, FL – In 2010, the PEACE organization began research into the issue of wage-theft, a widespread practice in some industries of non-payment or under-payment of agreed-upon wages after the work has been completed. Similar to the example of Miami-Dade County, which passed an ordinance in February 2010 prohibiting wage theft and establishing a process for workers to file complaints to be investigated by the County, PEACE sought for the same protection in Palm Beach County. On April 19, 2010, 1,313 people attended PEACE’s Nehemiah Action Assembly – the largest turnout in the organization’s nineteen year history. At this Action, PEACE secured commitments from the four County Commissioners in attendance to support the passage of a Wage Theft Ordinance. In October 2010, the County Commissioners voted 6-0 for a first reading of the ordinance, scheduled February 1, 2011. After significant pressure from special interest groups, the issue broadened to the state level later that year where PEACE blocked passage of a state law that would have prevented local counties from passing protections against wage-theft. PEACE is now working with county officials to finally pass the ordinance
Loans lead to jobs in Pinellas
2010 | Economic Opportunity
Pinellas County, FL – In the wake of local unemployment rates as high as 13%, in 2010 FAST won measures to create jobs through the expansion of small and locally owned businesses. Research showed there are over 54,000 Pinellas County residents that are currently unemployed, and 91% of the county’s businesses are small businesses, with less than 50 employees. One of the main problems faced by small businesses is getting access to financing or loans, yet more than 80% of small businesses depend on some sort of financing to grow their business. Recently the Pinellas County Economic Development held a lending fair, to assist small businesses in applying and getting approved for loans, with representation from over 25 business lenders. FAST is following up with PCED about designing and implementing a program in the county which would provide incentives to small businesses to help them create jobs.Mayor Foster of St. Petersburg has committed to doubling the amount of contracts and purchasing that goes to small businesses, from 5% to 10%, in the year 2011.
TUSA wins Green Jobs Training program
2010 | Economic Opportunity
Toledo, OH – TUSA’s research showed that the majority of job seekers were over the age of 35 and only 12% had a degree from a college or technical school. Therefore, TUSA challenged elected officials in May 2009 to dedicate funding towards training Toledo residents with the skills that would prepare them for jobs in new and emerging industries. TUSA secured $1 million of Workforce Investment Dollars for Green Job Training from the County, an extension of the Green Jobs Coordinator Position to oversee the Green Jobs Training Program, and $100,000 from the city to invest in training efforts for Toledo residents. At the 2010 Nehemiah Action, the County Commission reported that from the $1 million TUSA had leveraged for training, over 200 Lucas County residents had already received training in growing industries, earning over 400 industry-recognized certifications. In addition, the City Council reported that the funds TUSA secured are leveraging an additional $150,000 of city and state funding to create the Lucas County Green Job Corps. The Corps will train and employ at-risk youth from the Juvenile Justice system with skills in green jobs. At the Action, representatives from both the County Commission and City Council committed to continue meeting with TUSA to plan for continued job creation efforts to employ those who have been trained.
LEAD lowers family fares, routes reach Dayton mall
2010 | Accessible Public Tranportation
Dayton, OH – On April 19, 2010, the Director of the Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority (RTA), Mark Donaghy, committed to presenting a plan to the RTA Board for the allocation of capital funds necessary to build and maintain new bus stops at the Dayton Mall. These stops would be within a reasonable and safe distance of mall entrances and provide shelter for riders. By November 2010, Mr. Donaghy followed through on these commitments and Glimcher Realty worked with the Greater Dayton RTA to make this a reality. Mr. Donaghy also developed a family 12-pass program which went into effect September 1, 2010, saving families 40% on cost when riding city buses.
Warrick County gains access to public transport
2010 | Accessible Public Tranportation
Evansville, IN – In 2010, CAJE achieved meaningful victories in the area of public transportation. Historically, Warrick County residents have been denied access to public transportation. Additionally, in the past, public transportation had not serviced areas where major hospitals and social services are located. Due to CAJE’s efforts, bus service was expanded to Warrick County beginning in August 2010. This service will also connect Warrick County with Vanderburgh County, where Evansville is located.
Access to language services for 25,000
2010 | Charlottesville
Charlottesville, VA – In 2010, the Charlottesville City and Albemarle County Police Departments and the Albemarle Charlottesville Regional Jail committed to providing equal access to language services for an estimated 25,000 community members with limited English proficiency. By November 2010, Chief Longo reported that the City of Charlottesville Police Department had implemented their Limited English Proficiency policy the previous February and they had trained leaders on the policy. They are now tracking language access use and the policy has been received positively by both officers and the public. Additionally, Colonel Matthews, Superintendent of the Charlottesville Albemarle Regional Jail, reported that the Regional Jail has updated their management systems to begin tracking language access issues.
Restorative discipline piloted in Sarasota, expansion planned
2009 | Public Education Improvement
Sarasota, FL – Research conducted by SURE in 2009 showed that Sarasota County uses out-of-school suspension at a far higher rate than many similar counties. Also, out-of-school suspension has proven to be ineffective in curbing undesirable conduct while pushing children out of school. Several elementary and middle schools lacked an alternate disciplinary program. As an alternative, school districts nationwide have begun adopting an approach known as restorative discipline, which focuses on peer accountability and raising awareness of the consequences of inappropriate actions. Schools adopting restorative discipline practices have had success in reducing both the number of out of school suspensions and the number of occurrences of troublesome conduct dramatically. In 2010, SURE leaders sought and received a commitment from the Superintendent of Sarasota County Schools to implement restorative discipline programs in two county elementary schools and one middle school, each of which had a significantly higher than average out-of-school suspension rate. SURE leaders expect results to lead to expansion of restorative discipline to other schools.
Teacher mentoring instituted in Miami
2009 | Miami
Miami, FL – At their 2009 Nehemiah Action, PACT made Education a priority. In order to address the high turnover of new teachers placed in struggling schools, PACT secured the implementation and continuance of a district-wide program for teacher mentoring – Mentoring and Induction for New Teachers (MINT) – in Miami-Dade Public Schools.
Safety in schools was an additional focus of that year’s campaign. Working with the Miami-Dade Chief of Police, money was set aside in the budget to place school security officers in high schools with the highest rates of crime and violence. Initially, officers were placed in six critical high schools.
Beds added to drug rehabilitation program
2009 | Crime and Drug Reform
Lakeland, FL – In 2009, Commissioner Bob English and the County staff committed to adding 100 in-patient drug rehabilitation beds to the Hope Now program. Thus far, 48 beds have been added, with plans to increase the amount of beds within six months. In 2010, PEACE prevented funding for the in jail substance abuse program (JASA) from being cut from the budget.
Substance abuse treatment established in Sarasota jails
2009 | Crime and Drug Reform
Sarasota, FL – At its 2009 Nehemiah Action, SURE received a commitment from the Sarasota County Sheriff to develop and implement an in-jail drug and alcohol rehabilitation program in order to lower recidivism rates (i.e., rate of repeat arrests) for addicted offenders, which had been reported at 75% within one year of release. In the summer of 2009, the program was introduced with 48 male and 32 female inmates participating. The results of this program have been extremely promising. As of June 2010, men completing the program have had a 13% recidivism rate, while women have a recidivism rate of 9%.
BOLD Justice demands action in 44 problem areas
2009 | Crime and Drug Reform
Broward County, FL – In November 2009, community leaders identified 44 areas within Broward County that are consistently plagued with prostitution, drugs, violence, and theft. At the BOLD Justice Nehemiah Action in April 2010, leaders secured commitments from four different law enforcement agencies to investigate and take action on these areas. Since the Action, police protection has been increased in many areas, primarily Ft. Lauderdale’s Sistrunk Corridor and the Hollywood area. Within two months of the action, 25 arrests had been made in these two areas, which included the majority of “hot spots” identified.
Restorative justice established in Jacksonville
2009 | Crime and Drug Reform
Jacksonville, FL – In 2009, ICARE’s research committee found that the greatest risk factor for a youth offender to become an adult offender is contact with the juvenile justice system. ICARE worked with the Duval County Public Schools and Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office to implement an evidence-based restorative justice program in one middle school and one high school starting January 2011. Restorative Justice programs foster dialogue between victim and offender of disruptive behavior and increases offender accountability through formal conferences and mediation. ICARE projects that this will reduce repeat offenses by at least 80% for students who go through the program, as demonstrated by the success of restorative justice programs in other communities.
FAST presses county jail to take steps to lower recidivism
2009 | Crime and Drug Reform
Pinellas County, FL – In 2009, the County Sheriff began working to implement strategies at the County Jail that will assess the job, housing, and substance abuse treatment needs of inmates in order to reduce recidivism (i.e., rate of repeat arrests). FAST worked with the Sheriff to develop a plan to improve the intake process and tracking system for inmates.
ICARE battles infant mortality with “Baby Friendly” hospitals
2009 | Healthcare Provisions
Jacksonville, FL – ICARE won commitments in 2009 from six area hospitals to seek the World Health Organization (WHO) “Baby Friendly” certification, a process that involves substantial training and personnel compliance among hospital staff to increase successful breast feeding for mothers before leaving the hospital. In spite of studies that show “Baby Friendly” certification will lower infant mortality (i.e., the number of children below the age of 1 per 1000 live births that die each year)., few American hospitals are certified as “Baby Friendly”. Representatives from each of the six hospitals have met monthly with ICARE leaders to complete the ten step process toward WHO certification. In 2011, all of the area hospitals have made progress toward the intensive certification process, one is near completion, and one has been certified “Baby Friendly”. This has led in part to a 20 year low for the infant mortality rate in Duvall country. When all six achieve this designation, Duval County will be the first and only county in the country to be “Baby Friendly.”
BUILD provides primary care to uninsured in Lexington
2009 | Healthcare Provisions
Lexington, KY – In 2009, BUILD discovered that at least 40,000 Lexington adults lacked health insurance. According to the local hospitals, the lack of routine primary care was costing the community millions of dollars each year. In 2007, at BUILD’s request, the Fayette County Health Department added staff and hours to see 700 additional patients per month. In April 2008, BUILD turned out 1,100 people to their Nehemiah Action where the Director of Primary Care at the Fayette County Health Department and representatives from local hospitals and nonprofit clinics committed to meeting primary care needs for an additional 6,000 uninsured adults. Due to the work of BUILD, the Fayette County Health Department and others have provided primary care to 10,000 of Lexington’s over 40,000 uninsured adults. In 2009 alone, $5.7 million of healthcare was provided to the uninsured in Lexington as a direct result of BUILD’s efforts.
Green Jobs Training created in Dayton
2009 | Dayton
Dayton, OH – Montgomery County lost nearly 42%, or 30,000, of manufacturing jobs over the last seven years. Through in-depth research, LEAD discovered that by investing in the new green economy, including investments in construction, manufacturing, energy, and other industries, the Dayton community stands to gain thousands of jobs. At LEAD’s 2009 Nehemiah Action, County Commissioner Deborah Lieberman agreed to spearhead the creation of a Green Jobs Training Corps that will work to put people on a pathway out of poverty and into sustainable careers in the new green economy. The Green Jobs Training Corps began training people in the fall of 2009. Additionally, Commissioner Lieberman committed to investing in new and emerging green business through the Green Business Incubator. By the end of 2010, Commissioner Lieberman followed through on all of these commitments.
BREAD targets Worst of the Worst, encourages County Land Reutilization Corporations
2009 | Columbus
Columbus, OH – BREAD launched a new campaign at its 2009 Action to focus the attention of City and County officials on vacant and abandoned housing. BREAD called for immediate action on 85 of the “Worst of the Worst” properties. The City and County took enforcement action on all properties, half of which were resolved within three months.
Franklin County Treasurer Ed Leonard, City Development Director Boyce Safford, and Deputy County Administrator Erik Janas agreed to develop a plan for the creation of a Franklin County Land Reutilization Corporation (CLRC). With strong support from BREAD, the Ohio General Assembly passed permissive legislation which allowed about half of Ohio counties to develop a CLRC in order to spearhead the redevelopment of vacant buildings and tax delinquent properties. In 2010, the County Treasurer called a summit with stakeholders in the community, resulting in the hire of a financial consultant to develop a financial model for the Franklin County CLRC.
Dayton fights blight
2009 | Dayton
Dayton, OH – Efforts begun by the LEAD organization in 2005 led the city to increase the number of dilapidated buildings taken down annually from 75 to 200. From 2006 to 2009 the city tore down an average of 600 abandoned and dilapidated properties in blighted neighborhoods each year. In 2010, 800 more buildings were torn down.
RISC intervenes to lower suspension rates
2008 | Public Education Improvement
Richmond, VA – In 2008, RISC leaders discovered there were thousands of suspensions in Richmond elementary schools annually. Some schools averaged more suspensions each year than there were students enrolled in school. A meeting with Superintendent Yvonne Brandon revealed that some students suspended multiple times received effective and formal interventions, but this practice was not uniform for all students. At RISC’s 2010 Nehemiah Action Assembly, which brought together about 1,000 people, Superintendent Brandon committed to begin interventions for all students suspended more than once, beginning with the 2010-2011 school year. In addition, the school district will track the success of these interventions and create a “best practice” for conducting effective interventions, replicating best practices from schools with low suspension rates.
PACT eliminates more than 100 abandoned houses
2008 | Crime and Drug Reform
Miami, FL – In 2008, PACT worked with the city of Miami to demolish more than 100 abandoned houses which were identified as centers for crime and drugs. As of May 2011, 70% of these homes have been demolished.
Drugs and crime in Volusia County now reportable with ‘hot spot postcards’
2008 | Crime and Drug Reform
Daytona Beach, FL – In 2008, FAITH identified and brought to the attention of local officials almost 250 locations in Daytona Beach and another 18 places in Deltona where problems with drugs and crime persisted. To continue police and community collaboration and accountability, Daytona Beach, FAITH worked with Chief Michael Chitwood to distribute “Hot Spot Postcards” and conducted quarterly meetings with the police department on the status of drugs and crime in the community. “Hot Spot Postcards” enable citizens to report criminal activity anonymously and provides a mechanism for the community to hold police accountable for a response.
Over 60 crime ‘hot spots’ eliminated in Pinellas
2008 | Crime and Drug Reform
Pinellas County, FL – Since 2008, FAST has been working with the Pinellas County Sheriff, St. Petersburg Chief of Police, and Clearwater Chief of Police to investigate and clean up crime and drug “hot spots” that have plagued Pinellas County for years. At their 2010 Action, 2,700 attendees celebrated the results of this determined focus. More than 60 hot spots of crime have been addressed with over 300 arrests made as of June 2010.
Columbus strengthens drug court docket
2008 | Columbus
Columbus, OH – In 2008, BREAD launched a campaign to expand and strengthen the specialized Drug Court docket in Franklin County. Research found that the Franklin County Drug Court was not being used at full capacity. Drug Courts operate under a specialized model in which the criminal justice system, mental health, and treatment communities work together to help non-violent offenders treat their addictions and become productive citizens, and has proven to lower recidivism and tax spending on crime when properly implemented. For example, incarceration costs in Ohio range from $25,000-$35,000 per year, while Drug Court costs only $4,500 annually. And while the recidivism rate for incarcerated offenders is 50%, Drug Court graduates have a recidivism rate of 17%. In front of 2,200 leaders present at BREAD’s Nehemiah Action, Judge Guy Reece committed to champion the expansion of Franklin County’s Drug Court from the current capacity of 50 to a capacity of 300 cases. Judge Reece also committed to work towards implementing national Drug Court standards in Franklin County. BREAD followed up with county officials and by the end of 2010 Franklin County Drug Court was at full capacity.
Drug treatment in Lexington now available to women
2008 | Crime and Drug Reform
Lexington, KY – BUILD discovered, in 2006, that the Fayette County Jail did not have a drug treatment program for women, despite the success of the men’s drug treatment program in reducing the recidivism rate from 60% to 19% each year (i.e., rate of repeat arrests). Through BUILD’s efforts, former Mayor Teresa Isaac installed $175,000 into the county budget for a women’s drug treatment program at the Fayette County Jail. By 2010, over 100 women had successfully completed the program.
CLOUT enrolls 47,000 children in KCHIP
2008 | Healthcare Provisions
Louisville, KY – In its “Catch a Falling Child” issue campaign, CLOUT addressed the fact that thousands of children were falling through the cracks of the healthcare system. CLOUT won a commitment from thirteen different state and local health officials in 2008 to form a task force and develop a pilot project enrolling 6,000 more children in Medicaid and KCHIP (Kentucky Child Health Insurance Program) within the following three years. This task force developed a set of recommendations on how to improve the state’s Medicaid and KCHIP programs. Gov. Steve Beshear eventually committed to dedicate $31 million, to be matched by $81 million in federal funding, to enroll 35,000 children in KCHIP over the following two years. From November 2008 to November 2010, over 47,000 children have been enrolled in KCHIP, including over 9,000 children in Jefferson County, with the original goals met one year ahead of schedule.
PACT brings HealthConnect to 101 schools
2008 | Healthcare Provisions
Miami, FL – In collaboration with several other groups in Miami-Dade County, in 2008, PACT secured the implementation of the program HealthConnect in Our Schools for 101 schools. HealthConnect is a program which assigns a team of professionals, often nurses, social workers, and health aides, to bring many needed health services to schools. Schools with a HealthConnect team are capable of providing physical, behavioral, and mental health services. As of June 2010, there were health clinics in place in 165 local public schools.
PEACE secures increased enrollment in coordinated care
2008 | Healthcare Provisions
West Palm Beach, FL – At their 2008 Nehemiah Action, PEACE secured a commitment from Health Care District (HCD) CEO Dwight Chenette to significantly increase enrollment in low-cost health care plans through the HCD. He returned to the 2009 Action, reporting a 25% increase in enrollment, the highest increase in enrollment ever, compared to a 7% increase the year before. In 2009, enrollment in HCD programs Coordinated Care and Vita Health had reached nearly 17,000 residents.
HOPE expands dental care
2008 | Healthcare Provisions
Tampa, FL – In 2008 HOPE received an agreement from two Federally Qualified Health Clinics, the Health Department, and Tampa General Hospital to create a plan to increase dental care for 15,000 people living at 200% of the poverty level. A draft plan was presented to the HOPE Convention in October 2008. As of November 2010, the Health Department has hired a Dental Coordinator, dental services were increased for over 3,000 people, and 22 new dental chairs were established at health clinics with 16 of the dental chairs at two new health clinics opened in 2010.
Dental clinic hires dentist, reduces wait-list and wait time
2008 | Charlottesville
Charlottesville, VA – As a result of IMPACT’s 2008 Nehemiah Action, with 2,000 people in attendance, the Charlottesville Free Clinic committed to hiring a dentist by March 2009 to begin to serve over 1,000 people on local waiting lists for dental care. The Clinic fulfilled this commitment eight months ahead of schedule and received $230,000 in funding to hire an entire dental staff in addition to a full-time dentist. The waiting list has been reduced to 200 people and the wait time for emergency visits is now 1-2 weeks, down from an original wait of 2-3 years.
FAITH improves mental health services
2008 | Daytona Beach
Daytona Beach, FL – FAITH worked for nearly a year to improve conditions for mentally ill persons held in the Volusia County Jail. Concerns stemmed from numerous reports of inmates not receiving needed psychotropic medications from the jail psychiatrist, as well as other reports regarding unjust practices by the mental health provider, Prison Health Services. The County’s contract for a mental health provider was up for renewal in August 2008 and at FAITH’s Nehemiah Action, 1,100 people challenged the Volusia County Council to contract with a credible, local provider for mental healthcare in the jail. The Volusia County Council agreed and ultimately awarded the contract to local and credible healthcare provider, ACT/Stewart Marchman, who began administering mental health services in the County Jail in December 2008.
Affordable renting expanded in Broward
2008 | Affordable Housing
Broward County, FL – With a turnout of 1,600 people at their April 2008 Nehemiah Action, BOLD Justice obtained a commitment from the Broward County Administrator, Bertha Henry, to convene the City Managers to draft a plan creating a net increase of 4,223 affordable rental units over the next three years. Furthermore, city officials from Ft. Lauderdale and Hollywood agreed to participate in this process. As a result of the 2008 action, $2.5 million was allocated toward constructing new affordable rental units and 358 new affordable rental housing units were built. In 2009, BOLD Justice continued to push on this issue. Funding for an additional 719 affordable units has been approved by the county for construction over the next year. This will create a total of 1,077 units, in addition to 1,125 more units whose funding is expected.
BREAD wins strongest payday lending legislation in country
2008 | Columbus
Columbus, OH – At BREAD’s 2007 Nehemiah Action, 1,700 leaders kicked off a campaign to address the issue of predatory lending. BREAD’s work as part of the Ohio Coalition for Responsible Lending led to the passage of House Bill 545. This legislation caps the interest rate that payday lenders can legally charge their clients at 28% APR, a decrease of over 360% from what these lenders were previously charging. The organization has also launched a campaign to expand the use of Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) in Franklin County. On May 14, 2008, HB 545 passed with a 29-4 vote on the Senate floor, followed with a successful consensus vote from the Ohio House of Representatives. The final stamp of approval was formalized on Monday, June 2, 2008 when Gov. Ted Strickland signed the legislation, thus creating the strongest consumer protection bill in the country. The legislation was later challenged through a statewide referendum in 2008, but voters overwhelmingly decided to retain the regulation.
Identification, birth certificates easier for homeless to access
2008 | Economic Opportunity
Tampa, FL – HOPE’s 2008 Nehemiah Action had 1,000 community members in attendance to achieve commitments from two County Commissioners to advocate for funding for Birth Certificates and identifications for at least 1,000 homeless people to successfully secure jobs and shelter. The Birth Certificates Homeless Assistance Program was established in November 2008 with a monthly reporting system and, as of November 30, 2010, there had been 1,502 birth certificates and IDs given to the homeless.
BOLD Justice wins training, fewer red flags at unemployment offices
2008 | Economic Opportunity
Broward County, FL – In 2008, there were 54,000 unemployed Broward County residents with some areas of the county having unemployment rates as high as 17%. As there are no unemployment offices in Florida, individuals wishing to receive benefits had to apply over the phone or on the internet, a task that proved to be difficult for countless senior citizens. If a mistake is made in enrollment, a flag is placed on the account and the distribution of benefits is frozen until the error is fixed. The only way to fix errors was to call an overburdened central phone system for the state of Florida. BOLD Justice discovered that employees at Broward County’s Work Force One stations could be trained to fix these flags in a matter of minutes. BOLD Justice turned out 1,600 people to their Nehemiah Action where they obtained a commitment from Broward County Commissioner Eggelletion, a member of the board overseeing Work Force One, to ensure that Work Force One employees receive the necessary training to fix these flags. As of 2009, 2,700 people per week go to one of the three Work Force One stations. Approximately 900 of those people at each station are there for issues of unemployment and to remove flags from accounts.
TUSA creates Vacant Property Action Council
2008 | Neighborhood Revitalization
Toledo, OH – In 2008, TUSA pushed for and won a City Ordinance which created a vacant property registry. This registry empowers the City to hold landlords accountable for proper upkeep of their properties and acts as an important tool to better identify problem areas so that the City can be proactive in stabilizing older neighborhoods. Lucas County Commissioner Wozniak also agreed to work with TUSA to reduce foreclosures through a foreclosure mediation program. Due to TUSA’s efforts, a Vacant Property Action Council was created in September 2008. This Council engages professionals from local City and County governments as well as the public and private sectors to pool resources to address vacant properties in the community.
Combating racial profiling in Pinellas
2008 | Minority Rights
Pinellas County, FL – In 2008, FAST, the Clearwater Chief of Police, and the Pinellas County Sheriff began working together to combat racial profiling. They are now accepting anonymous and third-party complaints regarding police misconduct. This was seen as a significant victory for Clearwater’s Hispanic community, where people are often afraid to report any misconduct they may experience.
PEACE improves alternative schools in Palm Beach County
2007 | Public Education Improvement
West Palm Beach, FL – After months of research, PEACE discovered “alternative schools” in Palm Beach County were serving as the school district’s dumping grounds for at-risk youth and provided no option of earning a high school diploma. At PEACE’s Nehemiah Action in March 2007, Superintendent Johnson committed to significant improvements in alternative education for the Palm Beach County. As a result, the number of students transferred to alternative schools has been cut by more than half and participation rates for the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) in the alternative schools reached nearly 100%.
CAJE focuses on technical training, literacy rates
2007 | Evansville
Evansville, IN – In 2007, CAJE received commitments from the Evansville-Vanderburgh County School Corporation (EVSC) for a pilot program designed to increase the number of at-risk high school students in technical training by 25% each year.
The EVSC school board also agreed to a new six-point plan to increase Evansville’s public school literacy rates among children from kindergarten to third grade. CAJE leadership has been meeting with the EVSC school board quarterly to monitor the progress of these two programs.
After implementing these two pilot programs, EVSC realized they needed to restructure the school system. A reading program has been implemented which has dramatically increased reading levels. Also, a new high school/technical center has been built, providing all local high school students access to technical training.
ICARE holds reading summit to turn around reading scores
2007 | Jacksonville
Jacksonville, FL – In 2007, the Duval County School District Superintendent participated in the ICARE Reading Summit, along with 75 school principals and reading coaches. The Superintendent then agreed to identify five low performing elementary schools as “turn around” schools for phonics-based reading instruction and increased resources and training to establish reading proficiency, as well as DIBELS testing to track progress. Since then a total of fifteen turn-around schools have been identified.
CLOUT looks to stop the revolving door of crime
2007 | Crime and Drug Reform
Louisville, KY – At CLOUT’s Nehemiah Action in March 2007, CLOUT members launched the “Stop the Revolving Door” campaign to secure reforms in the criminal justice system. Then Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice Joseph Lambert followed through on his commitment to double the size of the Drug Court program, to provide more training for judges on how to use the program, and to maintain the licensed treatment component of the program. Drug Courts operate under a specialized model in which the criminal justice system, mental health, and treatment communities work together to help non-violent offenders treat their addictions and become productive citizens, and has proven to lower recidivism and tax spending on crime when properly implemented. Kentucky Department of Corrections Commission John Rees followed through on his commitment by creating a new training program in issues related to drug & alcohol addiction for all Probation and Parole staff statewide; it is now required for all new and existing staff. Louisville Mayor Jerry Abramson followed through on his commitment to establish a new drug treatment program in the local jail.
VCC increases access to primary care by 16,000
2007 | Healthcare Provisions
Richmond, VA -RISC began working on increasing access to primary care for the uninsured in 2007. Organization leaders learned that Greater Richmond was home to 57,000 low-income uninsured persons with no access to primary care. RISC leaders discovered that Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), which runs a public hospital, had access to more than $100 million in state and federal money specifically delegated for care for the uninsured. At the 2009 Nehemiah Action, with 1,000 people present, RISC received a written commitment from the CEO of VCU Health Systems to increase access to primary care for the uninsured through the Virginia Coordinated Care program. At the 2010 Action, VCU agreed to take further steps to increase access to primary care. From 2008 to 2011, the number of uninsured low-income individuals enrolled in the VCU program has increased from 11,000 to 27,000
BREAD gets funding for affordable housing units in Franklin County
2007 | Affordable Housing
Columbus, OH – BREAD’s Jubilee Housing Campaign succeeded in getting Columbus and Franklin County to create the Columbus-Franklin County Affordable Housing Trust Fund. In 2007, the Fund helped create over 500 units of affordable housing for people making less than $39,000 a year. After continued pressure from BREAD, in 2006, Franklin County tripled the amount of money (now $3 million annually) that it is invested in the Affordable Housing Trust Fund with a guarantee that $1 million of that new funding would benefit projects built for families at or below 30% of the area median income. In addition, BREAD has worked aggressively to monitor the work of the Fund and has negotiated for more stringent reporting and targeting requirements. In 2008 alone, the fund made loans totaling $5 million to produce 805 new units of affordable housing. In 2009, 783 more new units were built.
Rent assistance expedited
2007 | Affordable Housing
Tampa, FL – In 2007, HOPE persuaded Hillsborough County and the Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court to help reduce homelessness by expediting rent assistance checks to 250 landlords so they receive rent assistance checks within eleven days instead of several months, preventing evictions and getting people off the streets.
Housing opportunities grow in Charlottesville
2007 | Charlottesville
Charlottesville, VA – As a result of IMPACT’S 1,600 person Nehemiah Action in 2007, the City of Charlottesville substantially increased their funding for affordable housing from $400,000 to 2.1 million dollars and a joint City-County-University of Virginia Task Force was created to increase housing opportunities for families who earn under $20,000 a year.
BUILD produces two new routes
2007 | Accessible Public Tranportation
Lexington, KY – In response to the BUILD organization calls, two new bus routes, managed by the local transit authority, opened in 2007 to provide access to higher-paying, dense employment areas of the city.
Sunday busing in Charlottesville
2007 | Accessible Public Tranportation
Charlottesville, VA – Because of IMPACT’s efforts on public transportation, a new Sunday bus service was implemented in 2007. The bus route to County Social Services and Southwood Mobile Home Park had over 15,000 trips in the first year.
FAST gets school-wide discipline programs in 37 schools
2006 | Public Education Improvement
Pinellas County, FL – Since 2006, FAST has been consistently holding the Pinellas County School District accountable for improvements in the area of school discipline. As a result of FAST’s 2006 Nehemiah Action Assembly, the Superintendent piloted a proven school-wide discipline program in eight schools. As FAST continued to push and discipline programs proved to improve classroom behavior, the school board increased the number of participating schools each year. By 2007, 37 public schools in Pinellas County had implemented school-wide discipline programs. Now, all schools in the Pinellas County School District – from elementary to high school – have implemented a school wide behavior program.
BREAD pilots Project KEY to reduce school truancy
2006 | Columbus
Columbus, OH – In 2006, BREAD received commitments from County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien to convene stakeholders, including local schools and the Juvenile Court to develop a comprehensive plan to reduce truancy (i.e., skipping school). A pilot version of the KEY Truancy Program was implemented in December 2007 and has resulted in over 200 mediations and 150 goal attainments from chronically truant children, reducing chronic truancy by 55% in six schools. In 2010, negotiations with the Columbus City School District led to the expansion of the KEY program to ten schools. In addition to the expansion of a proven truancy-reduction program, BREAD secured an agreement from the Superintendent of Columbus City Schools (CCS) to end the practice of out-of-school suspension as a punishment for truancy. Despite this being against CCS policy, BREAD found that 4,262 such suspensions occurred in the 2008-09 school year.
Truancy lowered in Richmond schools
2006 | Public Education Improvement
Richmond, VA – In 2006, RISC played an instrumental role in leveraging $1 million in public funds for a Truancy Task Force. As a result, the truancy rate (i.e., rate at which kids are not in school) throughout the district decreased from 26% to 15% within one year.
FAITH expands Direct Instruction in Volusia County
2006 | Daytona Beach
Daytona Beach, FL – FAITH has been working in Volusia County for the past decade to implement and expand a reading curriculum known as Direct Instruction (DI) that has proven to improve reading levels for at-risk students when properly implemented. The school district agreed in 2006 to increase the number of students eligible for Direct Instruction by 10%. Due to an increasing number of third grade students using the DI Reading Curriculum, FAITH’s Education Committee was proud to announce third grade FCAT scores reached an all time high. In 2008, many Title 1 schools implemented an additional hour of instruction through the Plus One program, giving students an extra dose of DI each day. As of 2010, twelve Volusia County schools are implementing the DI curriculum. The Volusia County School District continues to partner with FAITH by supporting the DI program and providing training for teachers and reading coaches
Youth Coordinator hired in Dayton
2006 | Dayton
Dayton, OH – In 2006, LEAD received commitments from two Dayton Commissioners to hire a Youth Coordinator. They also agreed to direct the Youth Coordinator to meet with LEAD within 30 days of being hired and to regularly report back on progress being made. The new citywide Youth Coordinator started in May 2006 and is now responsible for compiling and marketing a comprehensive list of out-of-school programs and services for youth, identifying programs that include learning, conflict resolution, and development of social skills, soliciting input from youth regarding programs they find appealing, and developing criteria to evaluate the quality of programs.
Community Dental Clinic opens doors
2006 | Evansville
Evansville, IN – After a long process, CAJE secured the unanimous approval of the Vanderburgh County Council to include a new dental clinic in the 2006 Health Department budget. The Community Dental Clinic located at 612 SE 4th Street in Evansville opened its doors on June 26, 2006. In its first six months alone, the clinic saw 1,700 patients, providing almost $300,000 of dental care. Payments are on a sliding fee scale based on income and no one is denied services due to an inability to pay.
FAST gets 1,469 affordable homes built, more to come
2006 | Affordable Housing
Pinellas County, FL – In 2006, FAST secured commitments from all seven County Commissioners to support the creation of an Affordable Housing Trust Fund to construct housing for families making less than $47,000 annually. At FAST’s 2007 Nehemiah Action, each municipality involved made clear commitments to create a total of 3,091 new units of affordable housing. As of October 2010, $19.2 million has been placed into the Trust Fund and 1,469 units have been built. 280 of these units are for families making less than $18,000 annually.
Abramson commits to Affordable Housing Trust Fund
2006 | Affordable Housing
Louisville, KY – In 2006, Louisville Mayor Abramson committed to the development of a local Affordable Housing Trust Fund to provide communities with funds to build, preserve, and rehabilitate housing that are affordable for extremely and very low income households. Abramson included this in his 2007 Comprehensive Housing Strategy, along with $1 million in seed funding. On May 15, 2008, the Louisville Metro Council voted 25-1 to establish the Fund according to the guidelines developed by CLOUT and its allies. Efforts continue to secure an ongoing, dedicated source of revenue for the fund. CLOUT also worked at the state level to gain the passage of legislation which is providing a secure and ongoing source of millions of dollars per year in funding for the Kentucky Affordable Housing Trust Fund.
SURE expands CRA for housing
2006 | Affordable Housing
Sarasota, FL – At SURE’s Nehemiah Action in April 2006, commitments were secured to protect and expand downtown and Newtown’s stock of affordable housing through expansion of the Community Redevelopment Area serviced by Tax Increment Financing and the reduction or deferral of impact fees when constructing new affordable housing. On April 10, 2008, SURE held its Nehemiah Action with over 500 people in attendance to press public officials for a renewed commitment to “preserve and expand” the stock of affordable housing. A recent breakthrough saw the earmarking of nearly $14 million for the redevelopment of the county’s largest public housing project to address facilities long neglected by local government and lagging far behind code.
Making transportation accessible for seniors
2006 | Accessible Public Tranportation
Pinellas County, FL – In 2006, due to the work of FAST, Brian Smith, Director of the Metropolitan Planning Organization, agreed to create a new one-number system for senior transportation. This new system, unveiled in March 2006, works with the Area Agency for Aging and allows seniors to speak directly to a trained professional who can help them with their transportation needs. This system benefits over 20,500 seniors in Pinellas County who cannot drive.
Funding late night bus service in Tampa
2006 | Accessible Public Tranportation
Tampa, FL – In 2006, HOPE successfully persuaded Hillsborough Area Regional Transit (HART) to extend late night bus service until 1AM on eight priority bus routes during the week and two extra hours on weekends at cost of $1.1 million. These extensions have been maintained despite severe budget cuts in the past few years.
Columbus’ Near East Transit Center opened
2006 | Accessible Public Tranportation
Columbus, OH – The Near East Transit Center opened in 2006 and provides a major link for center-city residents to outer-belt jobs. BREAD began pushing for this center in 2000 and had Congresswoman Deborah Pryce champion funding at the federal level, resulting in a $1 million federal grant. BREAD also brought together numerous community meetings with the Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) to assist with the design of the center. In addition to expanding transportation, the Transit Center now features 9,617 square feet of retail and office space in what was previously considered a decaying corridor.
Pre-K programs funded in Pinellas
2005 | Public Education Improvement
Pinellas County, FL – FAST secured commitments in 2005 from the director of the Early Learning Coalition to provide funding for full-day Pre-Kindergarten (Pre-K) for any child whose parents are working and make less than 200% of the poverty level. Pre-K refers to educational programming for children around the age of four and has proven to prepare kids to better succeed in kindergarten. As of October 2010, over 4,600 low-income four-year-olds in Pinellas County have been able to attend Pre-K as a result of this funding. Pinellas County now ranks second in the state of Florida in the percentage of children enrolled in Pre-K programs.
Behavior strategies implemented in 12 inner-city Jacksonville schools
2005 | Jacksonville
Jacksonville, FL – ICARE worked with the Duval County School Board to implement a research-based, pro-active, and positive classroom and school-wide behavior strategy in a dozen inner-city schools for the 2002-2003 school year. By 2005, this strategy had spread to all middle and high schools in the district, resulting in a 30% reduction in office referrals and out-of-school suspensions. This translates to nearly 11,400 fewer incidents in 2005 than 2004. In 2009, in- and out-of-school suspensions dropped 68% and the district created a new alternative to out-of-school suspension with five sites to place students.
Lexington high school institutes Individualized Graduation Plans, hires Highly Skilled Educator
2005 | Lexington
Lexington, KY – Due to the BUILD organization’s efforts, Bryan Station High School implemented Individualized Graduation Plans (IGPs) in 2005. An IGP is a plan of study that emphasizes academic and career development for students in high school and sets learning goals based on academic and career interests. Not only did Bryan Station implement the plans, but they did it faster than originally committed. BUILD also ensured the hire of a Highly Skilled Educator (HSE) for the 2005-2006 academic year at Winburn Middle School. An HSE acts as a coach for teachers, helping them learn better teaching methods.
Hot Spot cards clean up high-crime areas in Toledo
2005 | Crime and Drug Reform
Toledo, OH – At their May 2004 Nehemiah Action, TUSA members asked Police Chief Mike Navarre to reinstate the Hot Spot Card Campaign to fight crime. Hot Spot Cards enable citizens to report criminal activity anonymously and provides a mechanism for the community to hold police accountable for a response. As a result, Chief Navarre met monthly with TUSA representatives to report on his efforts to clean up these hot spots of crime and forwarded housing complaints to the Neighborhoods Department. By 2005, the campaign resulted in the clean-up of 230 high-crime areas.
Community healthcare services expand tenfold in Columbus
2005 | Columbus
Columbus, OH – In 2005, BREAD won a commitment of $1.2 million from Franklin County to expand services at the Columbus Neighborhood Health Centers (CNHC). This allocation meant more than 2,700 people received annual on-going healthcare beginning in 2006. BREAD also convinced the Columbus City Council to restore more than $343,000 in proposed cuts to the CNHC. As a result, 1,500 people continued to receive prescription drug benefits in 2005. At BREAD’s May 2009 Nehemiah Action, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown committed his full support to lobby the U.S. Department of Health for stimulus money to expand neighborhood health centers in Columbus. In the fall of 2009, $4.5 million was awarded to expand community healthcare services tenfold. On October 4, 2010, ground breaking ceremonies were held for the new Capital Park Neighborhood Health Center located at 2150 Angler Road, Columbus, Ohio.
“Dirty 30″ properties cleaned up
2005 | Jacksonville
Jacksonville, FL – On several occasions from 1996 to 2005, ICARE brought to the attention of the Mayor’s Office a number of infrastructure improvement areas identified by ICARE’s membership. Over 250 areas had been identified, including those that needed street repairs, removal of abandoned buildings, improved street lighting, and drainage improvements. In 2004, ICARE brought a list of 30 run down properties, “The Dirty 30,” to city officials. By the fall of 2005, full clean-up operations had been conducted in all of these areas.
CLOUT wins Direct Instruction
2004 | Louisville
Louisville, KY – In 2004, CLOUT won the implementation of Direct Instruction (DI), a phonics-based reading curriculum proven to increase reading abilities of at-risk youth, in Jefferson County schools. As a result, 48% of Kindergartners at Shelby Elementary, formerly the lowest performing school in Kentucky in reading, entered first grade reading at the Second Grade level. 63% of Mill Creek Elementary Kindergartners were also reading at the Second Grade level. CLOUT successfully negotiated an agreement with the school district to implement DI in two additional schools beginning the fall of 2005.
Regional Taskforce created in Sarasota
2004 | Crime and Drug Reform
Sarasota, FL – At SURE’s May 2004 Nehemiah Action, the Sarasota County Sheriff, City of Sarasota Chief of Police, and Executive Director of the Sarasota Housing Authority committed to the establishment of a Regional Taskforce to coordinate crime-reduction activities with neighborhood and church leaders in the north County area.
ICARE ups enrollment in KidCare
2004 | Healthcare Provisions
Jacksonville, FL – In 2004, ICARE led local efforts to ensure enrollment caps were lifted for the Florida KidCare program, a program which offers affordable healthcare for children from low-income families. This resulted in 4,500 children in Northeast Florida and 90,000 children statewide being offered affordable healthcare. ICARE’s efforts also included the passage of a Jacksonville City Council resolution supporting KidCare.