First Annual Report of Strong Cities, Strong Communities Initiative Released

Last month, the White House released the first annual report of Strong Cities, Strong Communities (SC2) – an initiative launched in 2011 aimed at building local-federal partnerships to stimulate economic revitalization and investment in our nation’s most distressed communities. Recognizing that federal support is most effective when aligned with the unique challenges of individual communities and regions, SC2 deploys a team of federal employees to work closely with each city. SC2’s overall goals are to improve the relationship between local and federal governments, provide coordination and support across federal programs, assist in planning and implementing a plan for economic growth, build local government capacity and encourage regional collaboration. The main components of the SC2 program, as well as the list of the seven pilot cities, can be found here.

The report details the capacity-building efforts and successes of the past year. According to the report, SC2 has helped the pilot cities more effectively utilize $345 million in existing federal funding. In addition, SC2 has sparked the development of 130 cross-sector partnerships aimed at aligning resources to target the most pressing needs of the seven cities. Some of the other achievements outlined in the report include: the establishment of a data-driven Diagnostic Center in Youngstown aimed at improving public safety with help from the U.S. Department of Justice; implementation of improved transportation plans in Detroit and Fresno; and, collaboration between local and federal governments resulting in financial support for small businesses in New Orleans and Cleveland.

Through their work on the ground in these pilot cities, SC2 teams are continuing to learn about best practices and policy innovations that can inform federal policy and practice. For example, SC2 teams recognize that employer needs must be matched with worker skill sets, requiring collaboration between public education, post-secondary education, job training programs, and local employers. In Cleveland, a collaboration between the U.S. Departments of Labor and Education, the Cleveland/Cuyahoga Workforce Investment Board, and local K-12 educators has resulted in a SC2-facilitated initiative providing over 1,000 students the opportunity to access comprehensive career information and job training.

Over the next year, SC2 will expand its policy work in the following ways:

• Provide technical assistance to Promise Zones – a new initiative mentioned in the President’s FY2014 Budget that will provide resources for 20 of the nation’s most distressed communities; 
• Invite a second round of economically distressed communities to apply to receive a SC2 team in late 2013; 
• Build the SC2 National Resource Network to provide short-term technical assistance to other high-need communities, disseminate best practices, and establish local resource networks and public-private partnerships; 
• Transition SC2 Fellows into new roles in each city; and 
• Strengthen federal partnerships with philanthropy and continue to identify regulatory obstacles as well as policy innovations and best practices. 

SC2’s work on the ground in these communities has already resulted in helpful resources and will continue to provide guidance in economic and community development for high-need cities. To learn more about the accomplishments of the seven pilot cities, click here.

For more information on SC2, click here for our blog post about the White House Council on SC2.

Webinar: Nashville Promise Neighborhood's Data Collection Strategy

The Nashville Promise Neighborhood – a 2011 Promise Neighborhoods Planning Grantee – has been working hard to collect data about their community. In an upcoming webinar – Community Engaged Research in the Nashville Promise Neighborhood – Nashville Promise Neighborhood staff will highlight how they went about designing and implementing their community-focused data collection strategy.

Data is often the centerpiece to any community change initiative as it begins to illustrate story about your community, including the current conditions that children, families and residents face. An essential tool that provides residents, community stakeholders and partners with critical information and a common language for the results that are needed, data can drive people to act and hold the entire community accountable for improving outcomes. The Nashville Promise Neighborhood, as well as other Promise Neighborhoods throughout the nation, have been gathering data in various ways. In Nashville, the community has been knocking on its own doors, and the results have been worth it. Over the course of three weekends, the Nashville Promise Neighborhood was able to get 485 door-to-door surveys completed. Residents were paired with trained AmeriCorps members, agency staff, and grad school students for the data collection push, arming pairs with a strong sense of built community knowledge that likely impacted the survey's increased response rate.

Join the Nashville Promise Neighborhood and their data partner, Vanderbilt University, for a presentation on their innovative and collaborative model for the design and execution of a comprehensive neighborhood survey. This webinar is open to any person or organization interested in learning more about the community they serve and want to engage community residents in a needs assessment process. Participants will learn more about:

• Community engaged research;
• Sampling strategies that can inform your needs assessment;
• Rapid data collection tools; and
• A model for successful academic and community collaboration. 

Community Engaged Research in the Nashville Promise Neighborhood will take place on Thursday, May 16 from 4pm-5:30pm ET. Click here to register.

Juvenile Justice Resource Hub Launched

The Juvenile Justice Resource Hub, a joint initiative of the National Juvenile Justice Network, the MacArthur Foundation and the Juvenile Justice Information Exchange, seeks to serve as a comprehensive source for information on current issues and trends related to juvenile justice. The website is being rolled out in phases, but will eventually include data and research on juvenile justice issues, examples of best practices and successful reforms, and tools communities can use to minimize unnecessary youth contact with the juvenile justice system and better support youth who are involved or transitioning from such systems.

The hub will include resources related to areas such as:

• Mental health and substance abuse;
• Evidence-based practices;
• Juvenile indigent defense;
• Community-based alternatives to involvement with the juvenile justice system;
• After-care for youth transitioning back into communities after incarceration;
• Racial-ethnic disparities in contact with the juvenile justice system.

Resources are now available for those interested in responses to promote mental health and reduce substance abuse that don't rely solely on the juvenile justice system, and users can sign up to receive updates about forthcoming resources in other content areas.

To visit the Juvenile Justice Resource Hub, please go here.

HHS Announces Community Economic Development Funding Opportunities

Recently, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced the availability of funding for two Community Economic Development Projects. Both opportunities will fund community-driven initiatives that spur economic growth by creating new products, services, and other commercial activities that result in the creation of new positions for low-income individuals and increased economic vitality in low-income communities.

Eligible applicants for both grant opportunities include Community Development Corporations (CDCs). Recognizing that CDCs often have knowledge and expertise around specific issues in their community, they are poised to use these funding opportunities to efficiently and effectively create new community economic development projects.

Community Economic Development Projects
This grant opportunity will fund CDCs that are working to create employment and business opportunities that benefit low-income communities. More specifically, funds can be used to help cover the costs associated with business start-up or expansion efforts, provided that resulting job opportunities can be filled by low-income individuals. In addition to improving the self-sufficiency of individuals and their families, grants are intended to also create businesses and employment opportunities that strengthen the broader community and attract additional public and private investment.

HHS anticipates using an estimated $16.3 million to make 21 grants ranging from $100,000 to $800,00, with an average award of approximately $750,000. Projects funded through this opportunity can include both construction and non-construction projects. Applications must be submitted by July 2, 2013.

For more information about this funding opportunity, including allowable activities and eligibility requirements, please click here.


Community Economic Development Healthy Food Financing Initiative Projects
The Healthy Food Financing Initiative is a coordinated effort between the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Health & Human Services and Treasury that aims to increase the supply of and demand for healthy foods in communities that lack access to affordable and nutritious food choices. As one program within this effort, the Community Economic Development Healthy Food Financing Project will fund CDC initiatives that both create jobs and improve access to healthy food in communities that have been identified as "food deserts." Specifically, funds may be used to cover costs associated with business start-up or expansion efforts, such as financing the construction of grocery stores, providing direct assistance to farmers or supporting urban and rural farmers markets.

HHS anticipates using an estimated $9.4 million to make 13 grants ranging from $100,000 to $800,000, with and average award of approximately $720,000. Applications must be submitted by July 2, 2013.

For more information about this funding opportunity, including how HHS defines "food deserts," please click here.

i3 Funding Announced: Validation and Scale-Up Grants

The U.S. Department of Education has announced funding for the 2013 Investing in Innovation (i3) Scale-Up and Validation grants. This announcement follows the March 2013 release of the i3 Development grants.

Focused on improving student achievement, the i3 program is designed to generate and validate solutions to persistent educational challenges and to support the expansion of effective solutions across the country. Now in its fourth round of funding, the 2013 i3 program is designed to target several priorities, including parent and family engagement. Complementing the Administration's efforts to increase access to high-quality early learning opportunities for more children—especially those from disadvantaged communities—this year's grant funding includes an invitational priority in both the Scale-up and Validation categories for applicants working on delivering high-quality early learning programs.

This year, Validation grants will provide up to $12 million to fund projects with moderate levels of evidence, and Scale-up grants will award up to $20 million for proposals that have strong evidence of improving student achievement. Validation grantees must secure a private-sector match comprising 10 percent of their budget; Scale-up grantees must secure 5 percent. Applications for both grants are due July 2, 2013.

To learn more about the 2013 Scale-Up grants, click here.

To learn more about the 2013 Validation grants, click here.

Second Chance Act Funding Announced

The U.S. Department of Justice has announced three funding opportunities through the Second Chance Act. Aimed at reducing recidivism and increasing public safety, the Second Chance Act provides funding for strategies and programs that help ex-offenders – both adult and juvenile - successfully reintegrate into their communities after a period of incarceration. According to DOJ, there are more than 2.2 million individuals serving time in our federal and state prisons and millions of people cycling through local jails every year. Ninety-five percent of all offenders incarcerated today will eventually be released and will return to communities, making community-based programs and supports and essential component of an individual’s successful transition.

Adult Reentry Demonstration Program: Planning and Implementation 
This grant opportunity will provide funding for local governments to develop comprehensive and collaborative strategies that address the challenges faced by adult offenders as they reenter their communities. Previous initiatives have demonstrated that successful reentry programs begin when the offenders is incarcerated, often providing things such as job training, and conclude after the individual has been successfully reintegrated into the community. This funding will help local governments develop evidence-based reentry strategies that provide the individual with appropriate evidence-based services. Successful applicants under this solicitation will be required to complete a planning phase (up to 6 months) for their projects, and after approval, will be authorized to begin the implementation phase of the project.

Eligible applicants include state and local government agencies and federally recognized Indian tribes. Applications are due June 20, 2013. To learn more about this grant opportunity, click here.


Comprehensive Statewide Adult Recidivism Reduction Planning Program 
Recognizing that developing comprehensive and effective strategies is complex, this grant provides funding for state correctional agencies to engage in a 12-month planning period. Throughout this time, agencies will have the funding available to access the data and service delivery systems – including the housing, healthy, employment and education systems – that are imperative to the successful transition of ex-offenders as they reintegrate into their communities. The reentry plans developed should include a particular focus on places where crime and recidivism rates are the highest and include evidenced-based programs and strategies.

Upon the completion of the Statewide Recidivism Reduction Strategic Plan, states may be invited to submit applications for implementation grants from between $1-$3 million.

Eligible applicants are limited to a state correctional agency or the State Administering Agency (SAA). Applications are due June 28, 2013. To learn more about this grant opportunity, click here.


Juvenile Reentry Program 
This grant opportunity will provide funding for local governments to develop comprehensive and collaborative strategies that address the challenges faced by juvenile offenders as they reenter their communities. As with the adult programs, previous initiatives have demonstrated that successful reentry programs begin when youth are incarcerated, often providing things such as job training and education, and conclude after the youth has been successfully reintegrated into the community. This funding will help local governments develop evidence-based reentry strategies that provide the individual with appropriate evidence-based services.

Eligible applicants are limited to state and local governments, including federally recognized Indian tribal governments. Applications are due June 17, 2013. To learn more about this grant opportunity, please click here.

Toolkit for Improving School Attendance

Recently, a partnership, including America's Promise Alliance and Attendance Works, released a toolkit for reducing chronic absenteeism among students, which is defined as missing 10 percent of the school year, or just 2 - 3 days each month. The toolkit, Count Us In! Working Together To Show That Every School Day Matters, discusses how chronic absenteeism is related to poor academic performance and provides resources and strategies for a whole host of community stakeholders, from mayors and politicians, to school administrators and local philanthropic organizations, interested in improving attendance in their schools.

Specific resources include templates for press releases and proclamations to draw attention the issue and efforts to address it, strategies for using data to drive community outreach and assess progress in improving attendance, and suggestions for leveraging partnerships with national service organizations.

For more information about this toolkit and other resources related to improving student attendance, please visit here.