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The Blog of NSR

Tag: sustainable development goals

Sto-Rox collaborative’s strength-based strategies aim to support, maintain community growth

Posted on May 31, 2021 by Alyse Horn

Above: Community leaders take part in the Launch Sto-Rox Incubator: Remixer event

To open an NAACP chapter, one hundred signatures are needed, each accompanied by $30 for the annual membership fee.

In distressed communities that membership fee can become the reason why a chapter doesn’t open, as opposed to lack of interest. For over 80 McKees Rocks residents, the Grow Sto-Rox collaborative is covering the cost.

“This is a real way to get people involved, and the first thing we’ve put our names on as Grow Sto-Rox,” said Taris Vreck, Executive Director of McKees Rocks Community Development Corporation. 

The Grow Sto-Rox collaborative includes: Communities in Schools of Pittsburgh Allegheny County (CISPAC), Focus on Renewal (FOR), McKees Rocks Community Development Corporation (MRCDC), Sto-Rox School District (SRSD), and Zellous Hope Project (ZH).

Albeit this is their debut as one entity, the organizations that are Grow Sto-Rox started to coordinate their efforts in 2014 when SRSD Superintendent Frank Dalmas called on local leaders to support critical youth and family programming. 

“I always thought of that as the beginning of what has become Grow Sto-Rox,” Vreck said.

Today, the collaborative exists to improve the quality of life of Sto-Rox residents through programs which are trauma informed, strength-based, and create equitable economic impact. The programs are continually molded by data gathered from community surveys and in person feedback, but an initial survey taken six years ago is regarded as the eye-opener for understanding the challenges Sto-Rox residents face.

–

In 2015, MRCDC and FOR partnered with New Sun Rising (NSR) to administer a community survey by a resident-led outreach team that identified the challenges and needs of the community, as well as the public’s perceptions of FOR and its programming.

“Oh my God, did we learn a lot,” said Cindy Haines, Executive Director of FOR.

Around 200 people completed the survey. For Black residents, their top three concerns were Violence, Transportation, and Food Security. For white residents, their top three concerns were Transportation, Creative/Social Connections, and Economics/Financial.

“Even if they were neighbors, it just showed that when you walk out your door, are you going to be afraid of gun violence? [For many people], it’s the way you wake up in the morning,” Haines said. 

Community members led the Sto-Rox survey, identifying their assets, needs, and opportunities

According to 2020 US Census data, the total population of McKees Rocks is 5,919 with 55.5 percent identifying as white and 33 percent identifying as Black. In Stowe Township, the total population is 6,197 with 69 percent identifying as white and 23 identifying as Black.

Violence in a community has detrimental impacts on residents of every age. Since January of this year, there have been over 30 shootings in the area. Bridget Clement, executive director of CISPAC, said a lot of students don’t feel safe walking to school, so they don’t go.

Another piece of the puzzle is understanding how stress at home hinders a student’s ability to learn, said Sto-Rox School Board President Samantha Levitzki.

“We can’t serve our students to their full potential when their moms and dads are struggling,” she said. “If the guardian is stressed out and worrying about money, lack of healthcare… it filters into the kiddo and we want to alleviate that stress so they can grow.”

According to the Vibrancy Index, 27.5 percent of the Sto-Rox population live in poverty and median household income is $37,084 which is 62% lower than the Allegheny County average. Index scores for Sustainable Development Goal 1: No Poverty and 8: Work & Employment are worse than 90% and 81% of the County, respectively.

Through critical needs programs, Zellous Hope and FOR have been able to provide immediate assistance to families and individuals unable to meet basic needs.

Haines said that Sto-Rox is a designated food desert and about 40 percent of residents don’t own a car. In the initial survey, when asked about where they got their groceries, some responded by saying that FOR’s pantry was their primary food source. Of the some 1,500 students at SRSD, 100 percent of them qualify for free-and-reduced price lunch. Grow Sto-Rox partners collaborated on food distribution throughout the pandemic, led by FOR. They’re also working with Grounded Strategies to bring a community garden and collective healing program to fruition. 

What ZH is able to offer is emergency funds that help people cover urgently important bills, such as an automotive expense that could keep someone from getting to their job. Both ZH and FOR offer services that provide the community with diapers, feminine hygiene products, cleaning supplies, and other necessities. Located inside the Father Ryan Arts Center, FOR shares the building with the Sto-Rox Public Library and is able to offer additional support and programming like Positive Parenting and Family Foundations Early Head Start.

Denise Zellous, executive director of ZH, said it’s important to move away from the “cookie cutter” approach of assuming what residents need, and instead asking them directly through conversations, phone calls, videos, and surveys what they need to improve their lives. Her “Things to Know Show” via Facebook Live has quickly become a reliable place to learn about the opportunities being coordinated in response by core members of Grow Stow-Rox. 

“What is most important to [Grow Sto-Rox] is that people know our main goal is to bring a strength-based approach to this community and not just put a bandaid on addressing the symptoms of what we believe is wrong, but get to the root cause,” Zellous said.

The collaborative understands they face the significant challenge of unraveling generational poverty, and that their efforts need to be trauma informed. As a group, they’ve attended trainings and learned different types of interventions to use when engaging with the community that can help people through the “trauma block,” Vreck said. 

Launch Sto-Rox Showcase + Celebration in 2019.

To implement this in a meaningful way, the anchor organizations need to continue the slow process of building relationships and transferring power to residents. Vreck said he knows the community is distrustful because “they hear about millions of dollars coming in [to Sto-Rox] and they don’t see a difference.” So, the collaborative decided that one of the first steps to strengthening their relationship with Sto-Rox would be to put the decision making power for investments into the hands of community members. 

The Community Investment Fund was launched in partnership with New Sun Rising and seeded by the Wells Fargo Foundation, offering $2,500 grants to micro businesses and nonprofit organizations serving Sto-Rox with less than five employees and an annual revenue less than $100,000. The deadline to apply closed on May 7, 2021. 

“This is a small pilot program, but the idea is putting authority and control of the funds into the hands of residents and letting them start to make the choices.” Vreck said. “They can show an impact on the ground that builds trust and encourages people to get involved.”

There have also been serious discussions of building a multipurpose campus in Mckees Rocks, similar to Bidwell Training Center in Manchester or 7800 Susquehanna in Homewood. The development of a campus within walking distance for residents would provide incredible opportunities for adults and older teens in the community. 

That, tied in with plans for the Sto-Rox Junior/Senior High School to become an after hours learning hub for kids and adults, is helping individuals “get into positions where they can hold their families together,” Levitzki said.

“We want to make sure that our students and parents are comfortable, and their living to a successful standard,” she said. “We want to make sure they have all the access and resources, and that’s what we’re trying to rebuild here in our community.”

–

After completing a strategic framework and initial operational plan made possible by a grant from The Forbes Funds, the most significant challenge the collaborative currently faces is finding and funding dedicated capacity to backbone the cause. Right now, each of the five organizations is stretched to their limit.

Haines said that “Grow Sto-Rox has been training, learning, coalescing, monitoring, and cementing the five relationships,” and together they hope to raise dedicated funding that can support a shared staff member who will maintain and build upon the momentum. In May, the collaborative was approved for inclusion in New Sun Rising’s fiscal sponsorship program. 

With the right support, the ability to communicate, engage, and encourage the talents of residents at this level would be revolutionary. 

To learn more about the goals and guiding principles of Grow Sto-Rox, click here. 

Posted in Featured, ProjectsTagged grow Sto-Rox, New Sun Rising, sustainable development goals, vibrancy index

New Sun Rising launches Power in Numbers initiative

Posted on February 2, 2021 by Alyse Horn

Pittsburgh, PA — To increase transparency between organizations and communities, and help them access the information and technology needed to reach their shared goals, New Sun Rising has launched the Power in Numbers initiative.

This initiative allows leaders to track and compare their progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals through the Vibrancy Portal, a central technology data management system created by New Sun Rising. Participants will also benefit from technical assistance to improve data collection and communications.

“I see this as a way of really bringing the community in to understanding the importance of numbers and why organizations may ask them specific questions,” said Jamie Johnson, Director of Programs at New Sun Rising. “Then there is the opportunity to have that anecdotal and qualitative storytelling happening so it personifies those numbers and connects the community at the same time.”

By assisting organizations in collecting and managing their information, this initiative gives leaders the ability to generate insights across multiple data sets to improve their outcomes, produce better reports, and engage stakeholders through storytelling.  The information also contributes to a shared data resource, which serves to promote collective impact and advocacy.

“Power in Numbers allows me to do the capacity building work that I need to do without hiring an employee or spending funds that my organization doesn’t have,” said Muffy Mendoza, Executive Director of Brown Mamas. “This year, I was able to do some foundational work that I’d been putting off for years through the Power in Numbers initiative. It helped me apply for more funding and develop a strategic plan to guide Brown Mamas in the next 2-5 years.”

The Power in Numbers initiative is currently serving those that have participated in New Sun Rising’s capacity building or intermediary funding programs. 

New Sun Rising will host a workshop from noon to 1 p.m. on Tuesday, February 23 for interested nonprofit and social enterprise leaders to learn more about bringing the power of data and collaboration to their work.

Power in Numbers was developed and launched through the grant support of The Pittsburgh Foundation and Google (Tides Foundation). 

 

Contact

Partnership or media inquiries about the initiative can be emailed to info@newsunrising.org.

 

About New Sun Rising

New Sun Rising supports nonprofits and small businesses to build vibrant communities through culture, sustainability, and opportunity. NSR believes that people and communities hold the knowledge and power to make positive change. We envision a future where regenerative community development practices create the conditions for true social, environmental, and economic justice.

Posted in ProgramsTagged New Sun Rising, Power in Numbers, sustainable development goals, vibrancy index, Vibrant Communities

New Sun Rising deploys Crisis Mitigation Relief Fund

Posted on April 21, 2020 by Alyse Horn

New Sun Rising (NSR) is providing up to $5,000 to small businesses and nonprofits who demonstrated critical economic needs due to the COVID-19 crisis, thanks to $100,000 in seed funding from the Hillman Foundation.

Successful applicants are receiving immediate funding and technical assistance taken as a loan repayment (0% interest, 3 year term, 6 month no payments) or Vibrancy Corps option, which provides full loan forgiveness. The Vibrancy Corps requires organizations to make a one to three month commitment to use funds to implement projects that address urgent community needs.

“We know how hard people work in our nonprofit and small business community. While COVID-19 has pushed many of us to our limits, it is inspiring to see how hard people are willing to fight to sustain their organization and community. The goal of the Crisis Mitigation Relief Fund is to help as many leaders as possible to endure this crisis, and mobilize them to build vibrant  communities together,” said Scott Wolovich, Executive Director of New Sun Rising. 

Although similar funds have been launched in Pittsburgh, there are several things that make NSR’s Crisis Mitigation Fund unique. Due to an innovative loan structure, nonprofits, small businesses, social enterprises, and cooperatives in Allegheny and Beaver County all were eligible to apply. In order to prioritize inclusion and data-informed decisions, the Fund Committee used information from NSR’s Vibrancy Index Dashboard to evaluate community impact, aligned values, and financial need. 

New Sun Rising recognizes that complex problems require complex solutions, therefore funding decisions also considered a Crisis Response Priority score and alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The wide range of supported organizations is a reflection of NSR’s triple bottom line community development methodology based on culture, sustainability, and opportunity.

The majority of organizations are receiving funds to help meet basic human needs by providing food, shelter, and mental health support, mitigating further losses for vulnerable populations such as immigrants and youth, and ensuring an equitable response to the pandemic. A total of 24 extraordinary organizations received funds, including: Barrels to Beethoven, Coraopolis Youth Creations, Hello Neighbor, Hill District Consensus Group, Kitchen of Grace, Inside Our Minds, Latino Community Center, Love Rocks Cafe, Protohaven, Revival Relief, Zellous Hope Project, Triboro Ecodistrict Food Relief projects in Millvale, Etna, and Sharpsburg, and more. A full list of awardees along with information on the organization’s Vibrancy Index Dashboard and Crisis Response Priority score can be found on the New Sun Rising website.

Neashia Johnson of the Hill District Consensus Group notes that “as existing food insecurity challenges are exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, having the support of NSR’s Crisis Relief Fund is invaluable as we respond to the direct needs of our community.”

New Sun Rising will continue to support projects addressing community challenges on the front lines, but is not currently accepting new applications due to depletion of funds. If you are interested in partnering to financially support the Crisis Mitigation Relief Fund, please email vibrancyfunds@newsunrising.org or visit newsunrising.org/ways-to-give.

 

About New Sun Rising

New Sun Rising supports nonprofits and small businesses to build vibrant communities through culture, sustainability, and opportunity. NSR believes that all people and communities hold the knowledge and power to make positive change. We envision a future where regenerative community development practices create the conditions for true social, environmental, and economic justice.

Posted in ResourcesTagged covid-19, sustainable development goals, Vibrancy Funds, Vibrant Communities

NSR receives $60,000 from Google to implement Growing Impact Through Data + Collaboration program

Posted on August 6, 2019 by Alyse Horn

Above: Beltzhoover and Knoxville leaders participate in the EcoDistricts Incubator at the Millvale Food + Energy Hub.

New Sun Rising received $60,000 in support from Google to implement Growing Impact through Data + Collaboration (GIT-COL), a program that will drive inclusive community economic development through increased data and technology use for collective impact by nonprofits and social enterprise businesses. 

Underserved leaders will also receive training to improve their own data literacy and help them to engage in effective collaboration, preparing them to better leverage technology.

“New Sun Rising is doing incredible work with the Pittsburgh community and Google is proud to support their latest Growing Impact through Data + Collaboration program. Creating economic opportunity for everyone through technology is a critical focus for Google and New Sun Rising is developing new pathways for the local nonprofit and small business community to gain access to tools and resources to help them grow and find success in today’s increasingly digital economy. We’re excited to see how this program will continue to push these leaders forward.” – Elizabeth Schwab, Head of External Affairs for Google Pittsburgh

The goal is to drive innovation in the social sector by supporting up to twelve nonprofits or small business leaders to increase their skills and knowledge related to data use and technology, to develop and implement an outcomes measurement strategy; and to create and implement an advocacy strategy. NSR will build upon existing relationships with partners throughout the Pittsburgh region with a focus on serving East End neighborhoods.

The Growing Impact through Data + Collaboration program includes four major components:

  • Data use (workshops + training)
  • Collaboration (development + support)
  • Technology (research + development)
  • Advocacy 

New Sun Rising will also work closely with The Forbes Funds and The Partnership Network, which together provide technical support in Nonprofit Capacity Building, Human Services, and the Community Development sectors. These partnerships offer targeted in-depth resources that leverage the partnerships capacity to serve the embattled communities strategically and pragmatically. 

The proposed project is expected to increase the technical proficiency of nonprofits and social enterprise businesses in the region to reach targets of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

To kick off the GIT-COL program, New Sun Rising is seeking people with ideas for collaborative projects to apply for the Ignite Vibrancy: Collective Impact workshop on September 7, 2019. Participants will receive support from mentors and peers along with the opportunity to pitch for $30,000 in total awards during the one-day event.

Posted in ProgramsTagged Homewood, Larimer, sustainable development goals, the partnership network, Wilkinsburg

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