Collective Impact

Objective

Safe & Sound will work within our chosen priority neighborhoods to build a neighborhood coalition to address issues around public safety and community advancement as we work together with our partners and local stakeholders to create a more equitable, safe, and thriving community. We recognize that such a complex societal problem as this cannot be solved by a single program organization or sector, and that residents and partners must bring their expertise to bear to collaboratively address systemic neighborhood change.

To do this, we will work to convene cross sector partnerships in these neighborhoods to collectively accomplish our goals. This work will be centered around creating a coalition and a shared agenda/vision amongst all organizations actively doing work to advance the outcomes of the neighborhood and its resident. As public safety and community advancement is broad and encompassing, we anticipate the coalition will be made up of groups working together in their own lanes but toward specific goals and will include:

  • Youth serving organizations
  • Social services agencies/organizations
  • Housing groups
  • Faith based institutions
  • Police and Public safety
  • Local businesses

Coalition Structure

The neighborhood coalition structure will be based around a backbone organization as the coordinating entity for work of the coalition. That work will be overseen by a local steering committee that will help set the vision and strategy. The work of the initiative will be done through working groups dedicated to specific topics that will meet regularly and will be made up on community members and representatives for neighborhood partner organizations. 

The process of implementing this work will closely follow the structed four phase implementation format of collective impact. 

Below is a visual representation of the structure of the initiative and examples how they can play out in our priority neighborhoods:

Backbone organization – Safe & Sound or another community group, will serve as the neighborhood facilitator of the work to cultivate alignment of the groups and the work, ensure the shared agenda is created and adhered to, serve as an accountability partner for organizations, manage reporting and data sharing, and work to bring in additional resources into the neighborhood.

Community Members – Made up on residents and youth that reside in the neighborhood as well as people that work in local businesses. The work of the initiative will be comprised of the items that this group has stated are the needs of the residents and organization.

Partners – Including youth serving organizations, churches, schools, non-profit organizations, housing groups, resident organizations, business improvement districts, etc.

Working Groups – Composed of partner groups and dedicated towards specific areas. Work groups could be formed around Housing, Neighborhood Safety, Youth Services, Employment, Neighborhood beautification, drug and violence prevention and reduction.

Steering Committee – Made up of select partners and community members that will help to guide and focus the common agenda