Urban Neighborhood Initiatives
Building Vital Neighborhoods
ANNUAL REPORT
2016
Our Mission Urban Neighborhood Initiatives works with communities in urban neighborhoods to build safe and thriving communities where people want to live, work, and play.
Table of Contents A Message from the Executive Director....................................3 UNI’s Model for Change............................................................4 Youth Development..................................................................5 Land Use & Economic Development.......................................13 Family & Community Engagement.........................................21 Financials................................................................................25 A Look at 2017........................................................................26
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A Message from Our Executive Director A question I’ve been asked more than once in the past year is “What does UNI actually do?” We’ve prepared this annual report with the intention of answering that question. In Springwells, our work falls into three categories: youth development, family and community engagement, and land use and economic development. Because we work hard to integrate our efforts, any single program can affect all three areas. Each of the programs highlighted here makes a difference in the lives of Springwells residents, but it’s the combined impact of all we do that creates lasting change. Everyone benefits when a neighborhood is safer and more beautiful, and when people of all ages have opportunities to acquire new skills and build relationships with their neighbors. Our vision of community development is a broad one. The Springwells neighborhood, where we have worked for nearly two decades, is proof that our methods work. How do we know? Our neighbors tell us how much they appreciate the positive change we have worked together to create. We have witnessed the achievements of our former youth program participants, many of whom are in college or launched into careers. I am particularly proud of those who are now part of UNI’s staff, serving as leaders and mentors in our youth programs. We see that people are investing in improving their homes, rather than moving out of the neighborhood, because they believe in the future of Springwells. Last year, more than 1,500 people invested their time as volunteers in UNI’s land stewardship, safety, youth programs and community engagement activities. If you’d like to know more, we would love to have you come and witness the impact of our work firsthand.
Christine A. Bell, LMSW
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UNI’s Model of Change Adult education
Family & Communtiy Engagement
Limited Transportation
Low attendence
School Attendance campaign
Low Education
Community Court
54% without High School Degree Limited PreSchool
Career Mentorship
Gangs
Out-ofSchool learning
Police relations
Arson
Mentoring
Book Distribution
Youth Development
Leadership training
Crime
Youth-led green projects
Drugs Marketing
Resident reinvestment
Land Use & Economic Development Poverty
Recreation
Built four parks
Youth led light the night campaign
Employ youth in public art
Support local business
Abandonded lots, homes, and buildings .
Blight
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Youth Development
At Urban Neighborhood Initiatives, we believe that nurturing and developing the children and youth in the neighborhood are essential to building a safe and sustainable community. In our target neighborhood in Southwest Detroit, the development of this population is incredibly important because one-third of the neighborhood is under the age of 18. We employ a model of youth development that engages children and youth in out-of-school learning opportunities, job skill training through our youth employment programs, and leadership development. In 2016, we directly served 550 children and youth in our youth development programs and engaged an additional 2000 in our listening campaigns and other initiatives. We implement a cradle-to-career pipeline with the overarching goal of ensuring youth are prepared and equipped with the skills needed to be self-sustaining adults.
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2016 Youth Development Partners Grow Detroit’s Young Talent JP Morgan Chase Foundation The State of Michigan Department of Natural Resources University of Michigan School of Social Work’s Curtis Center DTE Energy Michigan State University Extension Program Detroit Area Pre-College Engineering Program 482Forward Partnership for Youth Youth Development Resource Center Skillman Foundation College for Creative Studies Excellent Schools Detroit Harms Elementary School local residents and business owners
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Out of School learning One of the greatest challenges in educating children in low-income neighborhoods is summer reading loss. This summer, we took on the challenge of improving reading in our summer enrichment program.
Thirty-four youth participated in DIBELS reading tests, and their scores increased 4.4% in 6 weeks.
We had some other key successes this summer . . .
76
72
percent
percent
Said yes to the statement “I like to read.” [Pre-program: 58%]
94
percent
reported knowing adults in their lives they can talk to about things that are important [Pre-program: 75%]
Said yes to the statement “I can talk about my thoughts and feelings” [Pre-program: 65%]
97
percent
reported being excited to learn new things [Pre-program: 91%]
85
percent
Said yes to the statement “There are adults in my community that I look up to” [Pre-program: 72%]
100 percent
reported school is important to them and they try as hard as they can at school [Pre-program: 86%]
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Youth Employment UNI provides youth employment opportunities through our Apprenticeship program, the Urban Forestry & Recreation program, and the Southwest Urban Arts Mural Project.
99
Youth
96%
participated in youth employment programs
said their experience working over the summer was “Good” or “AWESOME!”
Urban Forestry and Recreation
11 Youth
22 Youth
92
100
percent worked in summer percent enrichment programs that worked with the curator of served 75 children Parks and Green Spaces in of youth received of parents reported they and youth 11 parks and vacant lots in positive performace saw a positive change in the neighborhood appraisals from their child after working in their supervisors the program.
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Southwest Urban Arts Mural Project
80
21 Youth Artists
Painted
percent
1800
square feet of commissioned murals
demonstrated professionalism, strong work ethic, and feelings of confidence in their artistic work based on performance evaluations
100 percent
of home and business owners who commissioned murals stated youth artists demonstrated professional and strong work ethic
Apprenticeship Program
42 youth worked in 22 local businesses and organizations
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new businesses and partners became work placements
100% of supervisors reported they saw quality improvement in youths’ professionalism and work ethic in performance evaluations
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Youth Leadership 98
percent
of youth succeeded academically, were promoted to the next grade level and/or graduated high school on-time.
Leadership 101 partnered with 20 residents to install motion solar lights to light up the neighborhood near local schools.
Youth leaders organized events including a peaceful protest, social media campaign, and photo voice project highlighting how the Detroit Public Schools’ debt affected their education
90
percent
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of participants agreed to the statement, “I feel empowered to make change in my community.” [Pre-program:69%]
100
percent of participants reported to having a career plan for the future. [Pre-program:69%]
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Land Use & Economic Development
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Physical development is an essential part of building a community. We believe that a healthy, sustainable neighborhood should have beautiful green spaces for the whole community and that safety should be a priority in allowing residents to enjoy these public shared spaces. We also believe that the best solutions to the specific needs of a neighborhood come from the residents who live there. In 2016, we made a concerted effort to continue engaging residents and families through our existing programs while expanding our network into pockets of under-served residents (such as Spanish-speaking immigrants), encouraging them to integrate into our land use and safety initiatives. Our goal is to develop beautiful and well maintained public spaces and support economic investment so residents will also invest in the neighborhod and choose to stay even when they have the resources to live elsewhere.
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2016 Land Use & Economic Development Partners Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation Southwest Detroit Business Development Association SER-Metro Southwest Detroit Community Justice Center City of Detroit Department of Housing and Revitalization Bridging Communities, Inc. District 6 Department of Neighborhoods Councilwoman Raquel CastaĂąeda-LĂłpez State Representative Stephanie Chang Detroit LISC The Kresege Foundation The Carls Foundation West Vernor Civilian Patrol Springdale Woodmere Block Club Friends of Patton Park Southwest Detroit Environmental Vision Southwest Detroit Community Benefits Coalition City of Detroit Department of Planning and Development Congress of Communities Detroit Equity Action Lab Grace in Action Church and Collectives Young Nation CLAVE Ballet Foklorico Raices Mejicanas University of Detroit-Mercy School of Architecture Early Construction Silveri Architects KES Engineering Ghanem Ghannam, DDS
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Land Stewardship Our goal in 2016 was to identify and train local residents to serve as stewards of vacant lots in the Springwells Community of Southwest Detroit.
36 corporations and local businesses provided volunteer labor, material goods, and financial support. 2016 Partners Behavior Health Professionals BID-Business Improvement District CCA Fusion CDX Global Detroit Audubon DTE Energy E and L Supermercado Fiat Chrysler General Motors Greening of Detroit Jalisco Auto Sales
Lear Corporation LISC Motor City Casino NDK Realty Our Shepherd High School Paul’s Pizza Quicken Loans Rock Ventures Sanchez Auto Wash Southwest Solutions University of Detroit-Jesuits
University of Detroit Mercy University of Michigan Sanche Construction SPC Youth Group Springdale Woodmere Block Club St. Javier High School Vernor Food Center YMCA Youth Volunteer Group Youthworks YAB-Youth Advisory Board-UNI
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Land Stewardship 2016 by the numbers
458,000 ft
1471
of vacant land
residents and coporate volunteers
4591
volunteer hours
MAINTAIN 104
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12
resident stewards
vacant lots
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Safety and Community Engagement After investing in the physical beautification of the neighborhood, we noticed a reduction in area crime. There was a . . .
9.9
percent drop in violent crime
&
16
percent drop in property crime
. . . in the 4th Precinct in 2016.
But only 52 percent of residents and visitors report feeling very or somewhat safe overall. Our goal in 2016 was to mobilize a new population of Spanish-speaking residents of the Springwells community to be active in safety work and change the perspective of safety in the neighborhood We identified the Amigas de Jesus at St. Gabriel’s Parish as a new community partner who could help us achieve this goal.
We hosted community forums on creating block clubs, recycling, self-defense and victim prevention, and eyes & ears on your block with an average attendance of 18 residents.
These workshops led to
peace, prayer, and safety walks to bring attention to high crime areas in the neighborhood. 18
Southwest Rides Southwest Rides is a social enterprise business subsidiary of Urban Neighborhood Initiatives, developed to meet the transportation needs of the Springwells area and Southwest Detroit through bicycle and skateboard retail, youth apprenticeships, and the Earn-A-Bike program.
In 2016: We built
Our apprentices worked
Brought in
60
1130
52,044
bikes
total hours
The Lawndale Center The Lawndale Center project will revitalize a former Moose Lodge and create a space for non-profit legal aid, the Southwest Detroit Community Justice Center, and a model of ecological responsibility in energy conservation and storm water management. We began physical development in December and expect Phase One of the redevelopment to be completed by May 2017. 19
dollars in sales
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Family & Community Engagement
Developing youth and land is only beneficial to a community if that community is connected and engaged. Family and community engagement is an essential part of restructuring the fabric of a community. Building a healthy, thriving neighborhood requires community input. Our family and community engagment is rooted in evaluating the structures and systems in place in the Springwells neighborhood and in the City of Detroit and engaging residents to provide critical input on these systems and to actively work toward creating a healthy, safe, and sustainable neighborhood. During 2016, we worked to decrease chronic absenteeism and increase college access in Detroit.
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Attendance Initiatives What does that mean?
We learned... 2 out of 3 Detroit students are considered chronically absent from school
Two-thirds of Detroit students miss at least 18 days of school or two days of school per month.
We teamed up with some awesome community partners . . . 482 Forward Attendance Works Brightmoor Alliance City Year Detroit Congress of Communities Detroit Federation of Teachers Detroit Public Schools Community District
Detroit Public Schools Foundation Detroit Youth Violence Prevention Network DTE Henry Ford Health System, Metro Detroit Charter Center Michigan Community Service Commission Detroit City Council Member Raquel CastaĂąeda-LĂłpez
. . . to set up our goal
Reduce chronic absence by 10% in our schools by the end of 2018
and our action plan
3 &
Southwest Detroit Schools in our pilot program
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9
Parents registered for first training on discussing attendance with friends and family
Launch a city wide messaging campaign with our partners
Southwest Detroit College Access Network College access and job training are a vital part of creating a sustainable, thriving community. Our
goal is to increase college or professional degree program attainment to 60 percent by 2025. We’ve teamed up with some of the best partners in Southwest Detroit to make it happen Congress of Communities Western International High School Detroit College Access Network Excellent Schools Detroit W-A-Y Academy Mercy Education Project Detroit Development Hispanic Corporation ACCESS
Henry Ford College Michigan United Madonna University Wayne State University Southwest Solutions Partnership for Youth TRIO Upward Bound/ Central Michigan University Cesar Chavez High School
University of Michigan- Dearborn ProUp and EnAct SER Metro Detroit Cristo Rey Detroit Regional Chamber Accounting Aid Society Skillman Foundation Detroit Parent Network Boys Hope Girls Hope
Listening Campaign 94 parents and students said the greatest barriers to post- secondary education are
Financial Literacy and Support.
After conducting our listening campaign, we decided to reevaluate our action plan . . . We are collecting resident input to design a cradle to career pipeline to prepare residents of all ages for post-secondary eduction in colleges and trade education. 24
Financials Expenses Youth Development Land Use & Economic Development Family & Community Engagment Southwest Rides Bike Shop Core Infrastructure & Support
Total Programming Core Infrastructure & Support
Revenue Grant Funding Individual and Corporate Donations Rents, Fees, and Miscellaneous Income
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What to look for in 2017. . . In October, Urban Neighborhood Initiatives will enter its third decade serving the Springwells Neighborhood of Southwest Detroit. Here’s what you can expect to see from us in 2017:
In Youth Development Expanding our youth employment programs to provide job training to more youth residents. Completion of the mural on the DTE Substation in Southwest Detroit.
In Land Use & Economic Development Complete Phase One of the Lawndale Center Project. Increase the number of vacant lots under ongoing stewardship and expand the work area to include the 48210 and 48217 zip codes. Continue building our base of local residents committed to safety work in the neighborhood.
In Family & Community Engagement Engage parents in ending chronic absenteeism in Detroit Connect parents and students to local universities to guide them in the admissions process.
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Our mission is to build safe, healthy neighborhoods Take action today.
8300 Longworth Detroit MI 48209 313-841-4447 unidetroit.org