VISTA Assignment Description (VAD)

Title: Community Connections Coordinator
Sponsoring Organization: Heartland United Way
Project Name: Heartland United Way
Project Number: 15VSNNE001
Project Period: (auto-populated)
Site Name: Heartland United Way
Focus Area(s)
Primary: Education
Secondary: N/A
VISTA Assignment Objectives and Member Activities
Goal of the Project: The VISTA member will identify and implement action strategies to address childhood poverty in Hall, Hamilton, Howard and Merrick Counties. The VISTA member will initiate a community engagement program to mobilize a diverse group of volunteers to decrease childhood poverty by increasing the public’s awareness, education and understanding about the complexities of childhood poverty. Three focus areas have been identified to engage community members and build stronger county partnerships: identify community aspirations and emerging needs, expand early childhood reading programs and grow resource development opportunities to broaden the base of donor support in the Heartland area. A community report card will be designed using childhood poverty data, images and stories. This marketing piece will provide a heightened awareness of childhood poverty and the impact it has on children.
Project Milestone: The VISTA member will coordinate a proactive growth plan to identify community engagement and resource development opportunities to serve more children living in poverty. The VISTA member will conduct community conversations in each county to identify opportunities and challenges. After compiling the information gleaned from community conversations, VISTA member will work with county team members to identify potential programs to help children be healthy and successful. Working collaboratively with county team partners, the VISTA member will craft a community outreach plan to increase the number of children enrolled in Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, a free book program to children under five, and to expand the base of donor support to fund poverty alleviation programs.
Indicator: Number of volunteers participating in programs designed to lessen poverty’s negative influence on children.
Target: 125
Objective 1 of the Assignment (Period of Performance: June 2016 – December 2016):
Conduct a series of community conversations in Hall, Hamilton, Howard and Merrick Counties and capture aspirations and challenges shared by participants.
Member Activity 1: Follow the onsite orientation plan for the first two weeks with the sub-site and primary supervisors.
Member Activity 2: Generate a document that outlines common themes.
Member Activity 3: Prioritize identified challenges and possible solutions.
Member Activity 4: Conduct community collaborative meetings and presentations to educate community members, including but not limited to providers, agencies and partners.
Objective 2 of the Assignment (Period of Performance: August 2016 – December 2016): Coordinate a resource development plan to broaden donor and business support.
Member Activity 1: Establish comprehensive resource development structure to fund programs designed lessen poverty’s negative influence on children.
Member Activity 2: Identify roles and responsibilities for county team members during the period of performance and recommend improvements to the team to be included in the development plan.
Member Activity 3: Identify improvements for current program performance measures and evaluate their effectiveness at capturing program success.
Objective 3 of the Assignment (Period of Performance: September 2016 – June 2017): Identify opportunities to increase the number of children enrolled in Imagination Library program to expose more children to the words they need to thrive before they attend kindergarten.
Member Activity 1: Working with local county team members and community partners, identify potential sites and opportunities to enroll children birth to five.
Member Activity 2: Investigate local, state and national funding sources to ensure program is sustainable.
Member Activity 3: Identify best ways to execute programs and potential sources of grant funds to offer more opportunities to lessen poverty’s negative influence on children.
Objective 4 of the Assignment (Period of Performance: January 2017 – June 2017):
Design a county report card to educate residents on childhood poverty. This marketing piece will provide a heightened awareness of childhood poverty and the impact it has on children. The report card will identify existing programs in the community along with new and strengthened partnerships to better serve children in poverty. These connections will ensure more people are aware of the services offered in the community, and that services have the resources required to expand to meet growing community needs. The next VISTA member will resume the efforts from this objective.
Member Activity 1: Implement VISTA member identified portions of the development plan which may include continued program evaluation, planning new or expanded programs or writing a grant for a program.
Member Activity 2: Implement VISTA member identified portions of the community outreach plan which may include researching and meeting with organizations, planning community presentations or beginning a strategic social media campaign.