Northside neighborhood, Chapel Hill, Orange County : an action-oriented community diagnosis : findings and next steps of action

This document is the final report on an action-oriented community diagnosis (AOCD) of the Northside Neighborhood in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The assessment was aimed at identifying the strengths and challenges of the Northside community as described by service providers and community members. The AOCD was conducted by a team of five graduate students from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill School of Public Health between September of 2004 and May of 2005. The student team was guided by Delores Bailey, a service provider and community member who served as the students’ community preceptor. Mrs. Bailey is the co-director of EmPOWERment Incorporate, and non-profit organization focusing on sustainable economic development in Northside and other communities. The team first attended community events to observe neighborhood dynamics and gain entrée. The team then examined secondary data about the neighborhood’s geography, history, demographics, economics, and education. After being approved by the School of Public Health’s Institutional Review Board (IRB), we conducted qualitative, key informant interviews with 11 service providers, 14 community members, and 2 youth focus groups to listen to issues of concern to them. After analyzing the data from these interviews and data from secondary sources, our team organized the results into broad domains. These were: economics, housing, crime, and community dynamics. Service providers and community members’ views on these domains were then expressed as themes for each domain. With input from a planning committee of community members and service providers, five themes were selected for discussion at a community forum. These selected domains were crime and safety, housing, economics, services for youth, and services for seniors. The Community Forum on May 10, 2005 was attended by 150 community members and service providers. The following action steps were recommended: Economics: Service providers and community members agreed that local businesses and local government should provide more opportunities for people to learn job skills. - Increasing awareness of programs currently offered by EmPOWERment, Inc. Investigating the state of vocational programs in Chapel Hill-Carrboro schools. Encouraging existing minority owned businesses to hire minority employees. Youth services: Community members and service providers feel that services, including those offered by Hargraves, are not meeting the needs of youth in the community. Ensuring Hargraves employees distribute information to parents. Deliver flyers to the Chapel Hill-Carrboro schools central office. Provide van transportation to meetings for parents. Organize more events for parents and children. Provide summer activities for children over the age of twelve. Petition the recreation commission for more teenage programs. Senior services: Community members and service providers feel that services, including those offered by Hargraves, are not meeting the needs of senior citizens. Mobilizing a committee to address the needs of senior citizens. Housing: Community members and service providers share a mutual concern for the current and future state of housing for long term resident of Northside. Creating a committee dedicated to addressing the many issues concerning housing. Compiling a list of current city codes (trash, noise, parking, landscaping). Creating standards specific to Northside from community meetings. Delegating accountability for deviations from standards. Publicizing the list to residents, landlords, and town officials. Crime and safety: Community members and service providers agreed that Northside is generally a safe neighborhood, but could be made safer by eliminating drug activity. Inviting neighbors to community watch meetings. Distributing information about meetings to churches and public housing communities. Placing the community patrol on the next community watch meeting agenda. It is our hope that this document will be of use to those concerned about the health and quality of life of people living and working in Northside.Master of Public Healt

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