U5A1-28 - Analyze the effectiveness of the process the Riverbend City Case Study...Please follow all instructions listed and Read the material provided. APA Format & Cite Peer-Reviewed Sources provided.

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Riverbend City: Needs Assessment and Prioritization

Introduction Ruby Lake is a predominantly Latino neighborhood located in Riverbend City. During a recent train derailment and chemical spill, Ruby Lake found itself directly in the path of the chemical cloud. Unfortunately, the neighborhood evacuation did not go smoothly. It became painfully clear that the emergency preparedness plan for Ruby Lake was outdated. This pointed to a larger problem: the neighborhood lacked an updated needs assessment. Ten years ago, when the last needs assessment was conducted, Ruby Lake was just starting its transformation from a Polish to a Latino neighborhood, so the community needs have changed dramatically.

Instructions: When conducting a needs assessment, one of the first steps is to assess the needs of the community—and to prioritize those needs. As you listen to the members of the newly formed Ruby Lake Needs Assessment Committee, consider how these needs should be prioritized.

Initial meeting Mo Xiong, the city’s diversity liaison, is concerned about the Ruby Lake neighborhood. The neighborhood badly needs an updated needs analysis.

To discuss the needs analysis, Mo meets with Mayor Keith Bauer, along with Victor Maldonado, a community activist. Victor shares that Ruby Lake residents are very unhappy because the city did a poor job evacuating the neighborhood after a recent chemical spill. One glaring problem: the city sent a Reverse 911 call to city residents to inform them about the evacuation—but the call was in English only, and therefore was not understood by some of the neighborhood’s immigrant residents.

The mayor proposes that they form a needs assessment committee that represents a cross-section of people in the Ruby Lake neighborhood. The purpose of the committee is to solicit feedback on community needs and how to prioritize these needs. Victor offers suggestions on who to include on this committee.

Let’s hear what the committee has to say!

Ruby Lake : San Lorenzo Catholic Church

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The newly formed Ruby Lake Needs Assessment Committee convenes in the basement of the San Lorenzo Catholic Church.

Father Yuni welcomes the members of the newly formed Ruby Lake Needs Assessment Committee.

Yuni:

Welcome, everybody! I'm so glad you're here. For those of you whom I haven't had the honor to meet yet, I'm Father Yuni Rivera. I graduated from Ruby Lake High School, and I've been here at San Lorenzo for the past five years. I'm proud to be part of this community.

I'm delighted to introduce two important people. My friend Victor Maldonado is someone many of you know. He's a community activist who's been a rock star at bringing good things to Ruby Lake. And I'd also like to welcome and introduce Mo Xiong, who's the Diversity Liaison in the Mayor's office.

Mo:

Thanks, Father Yuni! Well, I'm delighted to be here at the first meeting of the Ruby Lake Needs Assessment Committee. As you know, the city is developing an updated needs assessment for this community. There hasn't been a needs assessment done in 10 years, and as you know, the demographics of this community have changed quite a bit. The city wants to be better able to serve your needs, and before we can do that, we need to have a good sense of what those needs are.

Victor? Do you want to talk a little about what we're going to be doing today?

Victor:

Sure, Mo. Well, since this is our first meeting, we're going to be doing some brainstorming. The city wants to know what we feel are the most pressing needs in our community. So I want you folks to put it all on the table and don't hold back! If you think that something stinks in our community, let your voice be heard. I mean, folks around here aren't exactly known for being shy, right?

<background laughter>

I see we have a question.

Nicole:

Thanks, Victor! Hi, I'm Nicole Fernandez, and I'm a fourth grade teacher at Ruby Lake Elementary School. I'm excited about the opportunity to be on this committee. My concern is that this doesn't turn into one big complaint session that the city doesn't do anything about. Is the city going to make changes based on what we say?

Mo:

Thank you, Nicole. Don't worry you're not speaking in a vacuum here. Based on the needs you identify, we're going to conduct research to find out more about the scope of these needs. Then we'll return that information to you and ask you to prioritize the top community needs. We'll use that information to make changes.

Nicole:

Oh well that sounds promising. Thank you.

Yuni:

So like Victor said, don't hold back. I'll be taking notes in my famous chicken scrawl. Let's get started.

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Martin Lewis discusses some of the problems he encounters at the Ruby Lake Health Clinic.

Martin:

I've been working in the Ruby Lake clinic for three years now, and one of the growing problems in the community is metabolic syndrome.

Mo:

I'm not sure what that is.

Martin:

That just means that people have a group of risk factors for heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. It's usually related to obesity. A lot of immigrant communities have this issue. People get accustomed to American dietary habits and their waistlines expand. I'd love to see some kind of public health campaign to teach people about healthier choices.

Yuni:

Part of the problem is that it's not easy to get healthy food in this neighborhood. We've got fast food everywhere, but there's no large grocery store close to Ruby Lake. People who don't own a car have to ride two busses to get to Cloverleaf Foods.

Martin:

I agree, Padre. And people don't have big plots of land around here to grow their own produce.

Yuni:

Maybe what we need is a community garden.

Mo:

That's a great idea, Father Yuni. Martin, what other health issues do you encounter in your clinic?

Martin:

Another serious problem in this neighborhood is teen pregnancy. I really think we need to do something about this. I'm sorry, Padre, I hope this isn't an inappropriate topic to discuss here.

Yuni:

Oh no, don't be silly. This is a topic close to my heart. My little niece Marisol is pregnant, poor thing.

Martin:

I'm sorry to hear that, Padre. Unfortunately, she's not alone. I know the city is going to follow up this meeting with some research. It would be great to see some numbers on how prevalent teen pregnancy is in Ruby Lake. My hunch is that the numbers will be shocking.

Bruce Greenberg, the Superintendent of the Riverbend City Public Schools, discusses his concerns with the local schools.

Bruce:

Thank you so much for inviting me to participate in this meeting. I'm delighted to be here with Nicole Fernandez, an award-winning teacher at Ruby Lake Elementary.

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Mo:

Bruce, what are your concerns about the schools in the Ruby Lake neighborhood?

Bruce:

Well, I'm happy to say that the graduation rate at Ruby Lake High School has improved. Ruby Lake High has had one of the lowest graduation rates in the city, and that's starting to change. But it's still too much too low.

Nicole:

I agree. I think we could do more at the elementary school level to make sure students are prepared academically when they get to high school. There are way too many kids in my fourth grade class that don't have the fundamentals of reading yet. I do my best, but with class sizes so big, I can't give every student the attention they deserve.

Bruce:

Absolutely, Nicole. And another serious problem in this neighborhood is the lack of after school programs for students. Compared to wealthier areas in the city, there's a serious lack of activities. And since so many students come home to an empty house, that's a recipe for trouble.

Ed:

From a law enforcement perspective, I couldn't agree more. When kids have constructive things to do, they stay out of trouble.

Nicole:

Could we start after school programs that help kids with reading?

Bruce:

Of course. I would recommend a variety of academic and physical fitness programs. The Lindner Hills Community Center has all kinds of after-school activities karate, dance, you name it. And the kids love it. Good after-school programs can steer kids away from crime and help them build academic skills. We just need the money to make this happen.

Pilar Mendez, owner of a local bodega, discusses job issues.

Pilar:

Unemployment is a serious problem in Ruby Lake. Whenever I have a job opening, I can't even tell you how many applications I receive. It's depressing. And I'm just the owner of a little store. I can't imagine how much competition there must be for jobs that pay more.

Martin:

We see that at the clinic, too. Dozens of applicants for a job opening. But it's not surprising. The Schneider Chemical Plant closing really affected Ruby Lake.

Victor:

Well, that's appropriate. I bet they manufactured some of the chemicals that got spilled in our city.

Pilar:

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Probably! It's such a shame. That plant was here for years. Once it closed, people didn't know what to do. They don't have skills to do other things.

Martin:

That is such a problem. People around here don't have the skills to compete for the jobs that are available. Riverbend City has a pretty good market for hi-tech and health care jobs. But someone who's been working at the chemical plant for years doesn't have the skills for that.

Victor:

Do you think a job readiness program would be a good idea?

Pilar:

Oh my goodness, yes. For young kids graduating from high school too. I see all these kids hanging around, good kids who want to work, but they can't find a job. Then some of them get into trouble because they have nothing better to do.

Lieutenant Ed Kowalski discusses crime and gang activity in Ruby Lake.

Ed:

You want to know what the most serious problem in this neighborhood is? That's a no-brainer to me. Crime. Especially gang activity.

Victor:

Ed, don't you think that's an exaggeration? Violent crime is down in Ruby Lake.

Ed:

Violent crime is slightly down in Ruby Lake, and thefts are up. And you can't tell me you're not worried about the gangs. I've been living here since I was a kid, and we never had this much youth crime.

Nicole:

You mean, you never had this much youth crime before we Latinos moved in.

Ed:

Now that's not fair. I'm no racist. If I didn't care about the kids in Ruby Lake, I wouldn't be worried about gang influence.

Victor:

I worry about the gangs too, Ed. It's definitely not as bad here as in other parts of the city, but any gang activity is too much. What do you think we should do about it?

Ed:

More police officers. More officers on the street mean less petty crime. And as for the gangs, I say we implement the initiative they've been using in the Shoals neighborhood. They closely watch gang members and pull them over any time they commit even a minor infraction.

Nicole:

You mean they profile kids who look like gang members?

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Ed:

No, Nicole, we don't profile kids. We monitor known gang members. We've been doing this for four years in the Shoals neighborhood, and it makes a difference. I think we should try it in Ruby Lake.

Victor talks about infrastructure problems in the Ruby Lake Neighborhood.

Victor:

Well, I have to say that one of my biggest concerns around here is infrastructure.

Pilar:

Ah, Victor I bet you're a little concerned about the sewers, huh?

Victor:

Well, as a matter of fact, I am, Pilar.

Pilar:

Care to share your tale of woe?

Victor:

Well, for those of you who don't know, I had two cars that flooded out in less than a month. Two. Both of them totaled.

Ed:

Both totaled?

Victor:

Yes, both totaled. I was parked in front of my apartment building before a storm. The sewers backed up and my car was totaled. So I went through my insurance and finally got a new car and then it happened again.

Ed:

<laughs> You need a garage, my good man.

Victor:

No. What I need is a neighborhood with a properly functioning drainage system. And streets without humungous potholes. And a park that isn't falling apart.

Pilar:

I know. The city spent thousands of dollars on that beautiful new park in the Lindner Hills neighborhood. Can't they even put some new grass down in ours?

Ed:

Look, I'm sorry your cars got totaled, Victor. But to be blunt, I think that infrastructure is the least of our problems around here. Crime needs to be our main focus. I can probably find you half a dozen people who had their cars stolen twice.

Victor:

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Oh, come on, Ed. Infrastructure and crime are related. If our neighborhood looks like a pit, people commit more crimes.

Ed:

Maybe. But I say, we prioritize neighborhood safety first before we worry about putting grass down in the park. If there's crime in the park, we could put a freakin' botanical garden down there, and no one's gonna come.

Interactive Step 1: Prioritization

Now that you know more about the needs of the Ruby Lake neighborhood, it’s time for you to rank these needs! That’s a very important part of writing a needs analysis. After you rank these needs, you will choose from a list of local organizations that may be able to help you address these needs.

1. Access to healthy foods.

2. After-school programs.

3. Crime prevention measures and programs.

4. Health promotion programs to promote healthier dietary habits.

5. High school dropout prevention.

6. Infrastructure updates.

7. Job readiness training.

8. Teen pregnancy prevention.

Step 2: Review Community Resources

For each of your ranked priorities, choose an organization that you’d like to contact for help in addressing these needs.

Organization Description

Catholic Charities of Riverbend City

A local faith-based nonprofit that helps struggling families meet their basic needs.

Gardens and Groceries A small nationwide nonprofit whose mission is to end the phenomenon of food deserts and making nutritious food more accessible to all.

Healthy People Now! National organization that works with urban communities to improve the health of both children and adults, and to address the issue of healthy food access.

National After School Enrichment Organization

National organization with information on how to build better after school programs, including information on grants.

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Organization Description

National Support Center for State Teen Pregnancy Prevention

National organization that provides community resources on preventing teen pregnancy.

Neighborhood Life A national organization that helps urban neighborhoods to advocate for infrastructure improvements and locate infrastructure grants.

Peoplepower A statewide advocacy group addressing issues related to inequality and people of color.

Riverbend City Public Health Department

City health department in charge of Riverbend City public health promotions.

Riverbend Neighborhood Watch

A local division of a nationwide program to bring citizens together with law enforcement officials to help prevent crime.

Riverbend City Police Department

Police department in Riverbend City.

Riverbend Senior Services Organization that provides resources to elderly adults.

Riverbend Youth Employment Initiative

A local nonprofit that works with local businesses to provide internship and other work opportunities to young adults.

Ruby Lake Health Clinic Small neighborhood clinic with multi-lingual staff.

Ruby Lake One Stop Center Federally funded neighborhood employment center, with programs for younger adults seeking employment.

State Department of Health – Hispanic Action Initiative

A state Department of Health initiative designed to advocate for public health issues affecting Hispanics, including teen pregnancy rates.

State Tutoring Association A state division of a national nonprofit whose mission is to provide high school tutoring to at-risk teens, and tutoring for GED students.

Teenwise A small local organization that works with teenage parents and advocates for teen pregnancy prevention.

Conclusion You have completed the Needs Assessment and Prioritization activity. The purpose of this activity was to illustrate how team members can collaborate to assess and prioritize a community’s complex needs. These are skills that will be helpful as you assess and prioritize needs for many different kinds of organizations and communities.

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Credits Subject Matter Expert: Emmanuel Tetteh

Interactive Design: Marc Ashmore, Chris Schons

Media Instructional Designer: Naomi Rockler-Gladen

Instructional Designer: Karen Weigman

Project Manager: Nakeela Hall

Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/)