Pollywog’s Community Asset Mapping Project
The Early Learning Hub of Linn, Benton & Lincol is proud to support the families in our region wi and information about early childhood learnin development. We believe that by working toge as a collective of agencies and service provide can increase family stability, improve kinderga readiness, and ensure service coordination tha equitable, and culturally and linguistically com
A crucial component of our coordinated work about the families in our region and the social of health, i e the conditions in which we are bo and age, that affect their lives Quantitative co is useful for understanding the context of socia population of a town or the median household how social determinants of health factor into th we must ask community members, and we mu
With this directive in mind, Pollywog and the EL Mapping Project in 16 rural Linn/Benton/Lincoln innovative tool for community-based participa we seek to engage and center the voices and experiences of families raising young children in rural communities.
Rural communities, in particular, face deep disparities in the resources that families need to raise happy and healthy children, and this inequity isn’t always related to geography. With each Asset Mapping session, we ask direct questions about families’ experiences in accessing resources and services in their community and beyond. Their answers show where families encounter gaps in needed support and will translate into data that will inform program funding plans across our region.
The selected communities were chosen because they are similar in size (under 20,000 residents) and have two of these existing assets - a grocery store that sells fresh meats and produce, a library, and a health care clinic.
The selected communities are: Brownsville, Halsey, Harrisburg, Lebanon, Mill City/Lyons, Scio, and Sweet Home (Linn County); Alsea, Monroe, and Philomath (Benton County); Depoe Bay, Lincoln City, Newport, Siletz, Toledo, and Waldport (Lincoln County).
What is Asset Mapping?
Asset Mapping, or the process of creating a map of community assets, is a handson experience that centers the participants’ experiences and opinions. Over-sized aerial maps of a community are the canvas for community members to share their perspectives on their community and its resources. We hope to learn more about the community that we can’t learn from just looking at a map ourselves.
Asset mapping is unique and valuable because it is strength-focused. We want to know about the places in a community that are valuable to families. To collect this information, we provide stickers with icons of various types of assets and participants are asked to place the stickers on the map to note the physical location. We also ask participants to write the name of the asset and any comments they have, positive or negative or neutral. If an asset doesn’t exist in their town, we ask for stickers to be placed on the edge of the map, indicating that families must go outside their town for that asset
After placing their stickers on the map, each participant is given a one-page survey that asks about other aspects of their community, like internet access, banking availability, and laundry facilities. We also ask what makes their community unique, what concerns they have, and what they love about their community. The survey questions are open and have space for answers in their own words.
Pollywog’s Asset Mapping Project is funded through Oregon Health Authority’s Public Health Equity Grant Program, which seeks to eliminate health inequities by 2030. Our work is funded by the Acute and Communicable Disease division, where we hope our gathered data can contribute to greater access to health care in rural communities To that end, we have been tasked with collecting information about these additional community assets: Annual Exam Providers, Emergency Health Care, Sexual Health & Testing, and Vaccine Providers.
Lebanon, Oregon
Lebanon is located in the northwest corner of Linn County, along the South Santiam River. Lebanon’s population of 18,587 enjoy riverside parks and trails as well as easy access to the Cascade Range. These features also drew settlers to the area in the mid-1800s, including Jemima and Jeremiah Ralston, who named the new settlement after Jeremiah’s birthplace of Lebanon, Tennessee.
Many of this area’s original inhabitants, known as the Louis Band of the Santiam Kalapuya, had succumbed to smallpox and other illnesses in the decades before Lebanon’s settlement Those who remained were soon to be relocated to the Grand Ronde Valley.
Lebanon is known for their annual Strawberry Festival and is home to the College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific Northwest. (Information from lebanonoregon.gov)
State of Oregon
Applegate Landing and Colonia Paz
Data in this report was gathered at two Asset Mapping sessions in Lebanon and combined for an overall picture of Lebanon’s assets. We are grateful to these partners and their residents for assisting with our project in Lebanon.
The first session was in partnership with Crossroads Communities at Applegate Landing, an affordable housing apartment community managed by Cascade Management. The community hosted a BBQ lunch and eight residents shared their experiences and opinions with us.
Our second session was in partnership with Colonia Paz, an affordable apartment community managed by Farmworker Housing Development Corporation (FHDC). Colonia Paz invited community organizations to provide information to residents during their National Night Out event, and shared food, music, and prizes Residents of Colonia Paz are primarily Spanish-speaking and 19 participated in this session.
Confederated Tribes of Siletz
Community Strengths
What do you love about Lebanon? What makes Lebanon unique?
Community Concerns
What concerns do you have about Lebanon?
Community Strengths and Concerns
The residents of Lebanon describe their community as peaceful, beautiful, and safe. Families value the support of neighbors and help each other when needed. They enjoy the convenience of many shopping options within their community. Overall, they feel Lebanon is a friendly place to live and they appreciate its location for outdoor activities and enjoy local social events.
Mapping participants expressed how much they value the natural beauty around their community. Lebanon’s location offers easy access to the Cascades Mountain Range and multiple state forests and county parks. Plus, the city boasts over 300 acres of parks, trails, and natural areas for recreation and activities Participants also noted the Lebanon Public Library as a community strength because of it’s programs and events for children and families.
“Our library has fantastic children’s and family events, most other events are tied to a church or the police.”
-- Lebanon Mapping Participant
However, participants in the Lebanon Asset Mapping sessions expressed concerns about their community as well. They described a lack of child care, a need for more services for unhoused residents, and frustrations with traffic.
The concern about the lack of child care and early childhood education options in Lebanon is valid, and part of a larger county- and city-wide problem. This is addressed on the following page of this report.
In 2023, according to the Point in Time Count, Lebanon had approximately 52 residents who were unhoused. Although Lebanon doesn’t have a shelter, the city website lists community organizations that serve the unhoused population and assist with connection to resources.
Traffic and transportation were mentioned as concerns as well. In 2017, the city of Lebanon completed a Transit Development Plan that identified community-relevant transit goals. In particular, Lebanon will implement a second route on the LINX Loop, the city’s transit system, as part of the plan’s goal to increase system ridership throughout the community.
Opportunities for Learning in Lebanon
The families and children of Lebanon are served by a mix of public, charter, and private schools. Lebanon Community School District includes nine K-12 public schools and one K-12 public charter school. One private K-12 school also serves the community.
In comparison to responses in previous asset mapping sessions, only one Lebanon participant shared comments regarding schools in Lebanon The comment expressed a desire for the schools to be upgraded and wished for “less power over students and families ”
Lebanon is also home to the College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific, also know as COMP Northwest, and affiliated with Western University of Health Sciences. For the 2024-25 school year, 429 students are enrolled to earn Doctor of Osteopathy degrees. COMP/Northwest has an 86.3% graduation rate.
Asset mapping participants in Lebanon marked COMP Northwest, Lebanon High School, and the Lebanon Public Library as a Place of Learning in their community. Early childhood education locations were also marked as a Place of Learning, including Family Tree Relief Nursery, Kidco Head Start, and Learn Play Grow Preschool and Day Care.
Lebanon participants expressed frustration with a lack of child care in their community, which is an experience many parents share in our asset mapping sessions. Linn County, like Benton and Lincoln Counties and many other Oregon counties, qualifies as a child care “desert” which means that there are three or more children per available child care slot.
According to Find Child Care Oregon, there are currently 25 child care and preschool providers in Lebanon, with almost 600 total spaces for children from one month to 10 years (some take children up to 13 years). Data from the American Community Survey states there are 1966 children (up to 9 years) in Lebanon In short, because there are more than three children living in Lebanon for each child care or preschool space, the community qualifies as a child care desert
Of the families who participated in the Lebanon Asset Mapping sessions, 18.2% placed their Child Care & Preschool stickers on locations outside of Lebanon, and 81.8% placed them in Lebanon.
“I wish there was child care in my neighborhood.”
-- Lebanon Asset Mapping participant
Health and Wellness in Lebanon
Families and children living in Lebanon have local access to medical care, which is unlike most communities where Asset Mapping sessions have been held. Lebanon is home to Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital, part of Samaritan Health Services. Community members have access to most types of medical care, including primary, pediatrics, emergency care, and specialist care.
Linn County Public Health operates a clinic in Lebanon and Community Health Centers also provides medical care in their Lebanon location. BestMed recently opened an Urgent Care Clinic in Lebanon as an alternative option to care in the emergency room. Obria’s Lebanon clinic offers STD testing, pregnancy testing, prenatal care, and postpartum support.
Dental care in Lebanon is also plentiful for the community Of the participants who placed their Dental Care sticker on the maps, about half (47.6%) go outside of Lebanon for their or their family’s dental care and slightly more (52.3%) receive their dental care in their community, including pediatric dentists and orthodontists.
Other Health Care Needs
The percentages shown below demonstrate the services that residents seek outside of Lebanon. (Note: Not all participants used every sticker category; these results are based on mapped assets.)
Survey Questions
Do you have reliable internet service that supports video? If your home doesn’t have cell coverage, do you have a landline?
All but two session participants stated they have reliable internet service.
Do you use a bank/credit union, a check cashing service, or both?
All participants but one use a bank and/or credit union.
If you use government services (Social Security, DHS, DMV, etc.) how and where do you access them?
Most Lebanon participants access government services online; half also visit the necessary offices in Albany and Lebanon.
Where do you do laundry, at your home or elsewhere? Is the laundry facility accessible? Is the laundry facility affordable?
All participants use laundry facilities in their homes or apartment buildings.
Is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
One participant stated that Lebanon is a great place to live because it’s near family. Many others expressed thanks for doing the session and one added that it’s important to collect and share this information with others.
Overview of Community Assets in Lebanon
Samaritan
Lebanon is a friendly and close-knit community with many necessary services and resources located nearby. Lebanon State Airport
Trinity Baptist Church St Martin's Episcopal Church
Community Data
All data are from the 2017-2022 American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year Estimates, except for data about Lebanon’s school district, which is from the Oregon Department of Education.
Total Population: 18,587
85 years and over
80 to 84 years
75 to 79 years
70 to 74 years
65 to 69 years
60 to 64 years
55 to 59 years
50 to 54 years
45 to 49 years
40 to 44 years
35 to 39 years
30 to 34 years
25 to 29 years
20 to 24 years
15 to 19 years
10 to 14 years 5 to 9 years
Black or African American alone
American Indian and Alaska
Native alone
Asian alone
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone
Two or more races
Hispanic or Latino Origin (of any race)
White alone, not Hispanic or Latino
Education Attainment
Child Population: 3,973
Households with Own Children Receiving Food Stamps/SNAP
People Without Health Insurance
People Living in Poverty
Below
Below 125 percent of poverty level
Below 150 percent of poverty level
Below 185 percent of poverty level
Below
Pollywog was developed in 2017 to align health care, parenting education, and early childhood services for children and their families in Oregon’s Linn, Benton, and Lincoln counties.
As a program of the Early Learning Hub of Linn, Benton & Lincoln Counties, families trust Pollywog to connect them with the resources and services they need, including communitybased organizations, medical services, and early childhood education and care. We also work closely with the Parenting Success Network, our local parenting education collaborative.
/PollywogFamily
/thePollywogFamily
@PollywogFamily
Pollywog is located at Linn-Benton Comm. College 6500 Pacific Blvd. SW Luckiamute Building, LM-132 Albany, OR 97321
541-917-4884
pollywog@linnbenton.edu
Thisprojectismadepossiblewithsupportfrom EarlyLearningHubstaff.Inaddition,the followingHubstaffcontributedtothisreport: ConnieAdams--DesignandText JinguangLin--DataAnalysisandDataVisuals CarmenSantacruz--SpanishTranslation
AssetMappingProjectUpdates
Followtheprogressofourprojectasweholdassetmappingsessions throughouttheLinn/Benton/Lincolnregion.Weinviteyoutojoinan assetmappingsessioninyourtowntoshareyouropinionsand experiencesasaparticipant.Youcanfindupcomingsessionlocations anddates,reportsfrompastsessions,andpicturesofmapsandsessions onthePollywogwebsiteandtheELHubwebsite.