Partnering with Low-Income Communities

Strategies for Community Organizations and Businesses

Building Relationships with Leaders and Residents Empowering the Community

Think about these strategies as you complete
the following worksheets. This checklist will
help to determine if you are building
beneficial relationships for both the
organization and community.
Use the following worksheets to determine the
organization's effectiveness at partnering with
leaders and community members. Also alllow
community leaders to complete the
worksheets to determine if partnership goals
and outcomes are similar.
Learn and understand the community’s history
Get to know community leaders and residents
Respect and acknowledge existing leadership in the
community
Include residents and leaders to serve in a
planning/decision making capacity
Work together to create a partnership where each
partner has a role
Identify synergies for shared outcomes
Mobilizing and Engaging the Community
Work with leaders to mobilize residents from the
community
Mobilize residents around issues that impact their
lives
Build upon and help improve new and ongoing
community projects
Help residents understand the benefits of their
involvement (i.e. child care, skill training, meals,
stipends, transportation, donation of supplies)
Ask people to get involved
Conduct a community inventory to help residents
identify their individual skills and talents (e.g..
Alliance for Children and Families 1999 Individual
Capacities Inventory; Building Communities from the Inside
Out A Path Toward Finding and Mobilizing a
Community’s Assets )
Show appreciation to residents by recognizing their
efforts and say thank you
Create a volunteer position description so residents
know the expectations of their involvement
Identify and utilize the community’s resources, e.g.
teachers, nurses, artists, maintenance workers, etc.
Allow residents to identify and assess their own
community problems, prioritize them and find
solutions
Allow everyone in the neighborhood to have a real
role in the partnership
Encourage residents to lead community projects
Help to develop existing and emerging community
leaders through training and/or technical assistance
Help leaders and residents build their own
leadership and management
Help neighborhoods manage their projects more
effectively
Provide tools or recommendations
Build connections among community leaders and
other organizations, businesses and government
leaders
Characteristics of an Effective Partnership
The community, its leaders and residents are viewed
as a partners, not as clients
Clear partnership outcomes and roles are developed
jointly with community input
Existing initiatives and new projects are enhanced
through partnerships
Partnerships have a shared vision - neither the
community nor the organization imposes its views,
ideals and expectations on the outcome
Partnerships understand and respect differing
perspectives and diverse voices
Organizations are flexible and have patience
realizing neighborhood efforts take time
Organizations extend its resources to help build and
enhance the community
Organizations help neighborhoods see the benefits
of connecting with services that exist along the
margins of the community (i.e. local services and
programs, and providers)
Organizations have a positive relationship with the
community and maintain a continued presence
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 Program/Partnership Development Worksheet
Purpose of the partnership or project:

Goals of the partnership:

1.

2.
This worksheet is designed to help you
outline the purpose, goals and outcomes
of the partnership.

3.

Anticipated outcomes from the partnership:

Partners involved in the project:.

1.

2.

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Partners involved in the project (continued):
3.

4.

What are the expectations of each partner?

Partners contribution to overall efforts:

1.

2.

3.

If conflicts arise, how will partners work to resolve them?

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 Preparing to work with the Community Worksheet
What do you know about the community (demographics, assets, businesses, etc.)?

Names of community leaders:

1.

2.

3.

This worksheet will help you to What problems exist in the community?
determine how well you know the
community and its members, and if the
relationship needs to be strengthened.

How did you determine the problems in the community (interviews with residents,
media, research, etc.)?

What other partnerships currently exist in the community?

1.

2.

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 Community Mobilization Worksheet
How are residents presently engaged in the community?

What mobilization techniques work best in this community (peer to peer invitation; one-
day activities; incentive-based, etc.)?

This worksheet helps you to identify the

community's resources - talents, skills
and assets and those mobilization What are some of the community's resources (skills and talents of the community
techniques that work best in the members, new businesses, employment of opportunities, etc.)?
community.

How do you plan to utilize the community's resources to benefit the partnership?

What are the benefits for resident involvement? How will you communicate these
benefits to engage residents?

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 Partnership and Project Results Worksheet
What challenges and barriers did you encounter in forming this partnership?

How will the project help add value to the community's existing work?

This worksheet will help you to

determine if the outcomes of the How will this partnership help empower the community and its leaders for the future?
program/project will impact the
commuity.

How will your organization sustain the project?

How can the community help sustain the project?

How will this partnership benefit the neighborhood/community in the future?

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 Partnering with Low-Income Communities
Strategies for Overcoming Common Challenges and Barriers

Lack of Resident Time and Attention
Listed are strategies for the
common challenges and barriers
that prevent residents from getting
involved
Lack of Resident Self-esteem and Confidence
Community Language and/or culture
Survival issues demand people's time and attention -
be flexible with project timelines
If residents get distracted - reconvene for a meeting,
re-establish reasonable timelines and refocus.
Organize neighborhood activities during times that
complement the resident's schedules
Host partnership meetings in a central location for
residents, such as a nearby community center,
church, local Volunteer Center, resident's home or
school
Schedule meetings during a time that is convenient
for most residents
Recognize resident volunteers for their hard work
and participation - make recognition meaningful
Help residents to identify their individual unique
skills and talents through assessment tools such as,
Alliance for Children and Families 1999 Individual
Capacities Inventory; and, Building Communities from the
Inside Out: A Path Toward Finding and Mobilizing a
Community's Assets
Show the relationship between residents skills and
project outcomes
Encourage residents to plan and lead projects
Learn and understand the community’s history
If residents speak a different language, assign
someone to work with the community who is
bilingual and knowledgeable of the community’s
culture
Learn and understand the community’s vocabulary
Identify cultural tension and use creative ways to
resolve
Residents not involved in the planning process
Empower residents by engaging residents in the
planning, decision making and evaluation process
Help leaders understand the assets and experience
they bring to the planning process
Community apathy
Help residents understand the power of both
individual and collective efforts
Help residents see benefits of their involvement
Offer incentives to encourage resident involvement
(see recognition ideas)
Mobilize residents around issues that impact them
directly
Find ways for youth to get involved in the
community to encourage parents and families to
become engaged
Help communities resolve conflict that may be
preventing resident involvement
Outside opposition to internal goals and ideas
Allow residents to identify and assess their own
community problems, prioritize them and find
solutions
Listen to the issues and concerns from the
community
Do not enter the community with a predetermined
agenda
Create a partnership that has a shared vision with
the community

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Safety Issues
Host meetings in place where residents feel safe
Help residents address issues of safety by developing
a plan that includes local law officials
Failed promises and unmet community needs
Meet with leaders and residents to understand
expectations from the partnership
Develop realistic expectations and a realistic timeline
for implementation new projects and initiatives
Be clear about your organization's role in the
partnership
Be honest about what your organization can or
cannot do
Allow residents to express their needs and desires
Lack of organizational commitment
Make a commitment to work with the community in
a continuous basis
Build sustaining relationships with residents
Assign a project officer who has the passion and
desire to work with low-income communities
Make working with low-income communities a
priority in your organization
Find ways to sustain project efforts beyond the
initial partnership
Lack of diversity among community personnel
Encourage existing leaders to train and mentor other
residents to become leaders
Offer and encourage leadership development
training and/or volunteer management training to
residents
Encourage residents to lead community projects
Help create volunteer opportunities in the
community (see Guide for Creating Volunteer
Position Descriptions)
Cultivate volunteer leaders as future personnel
organizations
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 Challenges and Barriers Worksheet

1. Challenge Resolution

2. Challenge Resolution

Use this worksheet to document the challenges and

barriers you encounter when working with
communities and describe how you resolved the
problem.
3. Challenge Resolution

4. Challenge Resolution

5. Challenge Resolution

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 Partnering with Low-Income Communities
Guide for Developing Volunteer Position Descriptions for Neighborhood Volunteers

Title: Give each volunteer task a title that reflects the role the volunteer will fulfill. A
title lends importance to the position.

Orientation and Training:

Type of training that will be provided, where, when, and how.

Location:
Indicate where the volunteer will serve.

Responsibilities and/or tasks to be performed:

List of duties and responsibilities
Use this sample guide for developing volunteer position
descriptions for neighborhood volunteers Qualifications:
Indicate what knowledge, skills or experience is needed.

Time required:
Minimum number of hours, days, or weeks. Include meeting requirements and
define a minimum and maximum time commitment expected from volunteer.

Benefits:
List benefits available for volunteers such as baby sitting, school credits,
meals, professional development

Supervision:
Name, title, and phone number of person who will supervise volunteer.

Suggestion:
Mark the position description with the date it was created.

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 Volunteer Position Description Worksheet
Position/Title:

Goal of Position:

Volunteer Responsibilities:

Use this sample template for developing volunteer position

descriptions for neighborhood volunteers. Qualifications:

List of Common Community Volunteer Titles: Timeframe:

Resident Project Leader Length of time:
Block Captain Estimated hours/months:
Resident Outreach Coordinator
Special Event Leader Scheduling:
Community Worker Training Required:

Location:

Benefits:

Neighborhood Project Leader:

Name:
Phone Number:

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 Partnering with Low-Income Communities
Common Terms Used in Low-Income Communities

Community Liaison - Resident representing the Street Walkers - persons who walk the streets to check
community to other neighborhood groups on senior citizens

Community Developer/Organizer - one used in Willing Worker - one who pitches in where there is a
community development organizations change agents need

The terms listed are those uncovered from past Neighboring - Building connections among residents Social Activist - one who advocates for a neglected
year learnings and those identified by that support positive individual and community behavior group
neighborhoods in partnership with the United Way based on mutual respect, responsibility and ownership
Volunteer Center of Southeastern, PA.

Resource Person - one who knows "what's happening"

Social Entrepreneur - one who uses financial profits to
strengthen communities by building social capital

Residents/Caring Person - one who organizes people

or resources to address community needs
Community building - developing communities by
strengthening its social capital, increasing its financial
capital, and building local infrastructure
Advocate - one who serves as a voice for the
community

Community Leader - one who lives and works in their

community who is committed to increasing the capacity
of residents to accomplish goals and objectives of the Block Captain - civic representative for residents as
neighborhood defined by city blocks

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 Common Terms Used in Low-Income Communities Worksheet

Neighboring Social Captain

Community Leader Community Worker

Use this worksheet to identify your own definitions Volunteering Community Organizer
for the listed terms as well as other terms used in
communities.

Volunteer Block Captain

Street Walker

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 Partnering with Low-Income Communities
Recognition Ideas for Community Volunteering

Listed are several ideas on how you can recognize resident
volunteers for their hard work and efforts. Please feel free to
expand this list as you implement other recognition ideas
in the community.
Host a community block party or picnic for volunteers and their families
Give free tickets to attend the movies, a local event, or an amusement park
Make residents feel appreciated by always saying thank you
Give gift certificates to a local merchant or a local restaurant
Give school supplies to recognize a youth volunteer
Host a recognition ceremony perhaps twice the year
Give awards such as plaques and certificates
Give a year supply of household products
Offer a shopping spree at a local grocer
Send a neighborhood leader or resident to a volunteer management or leadership
training
Give a food basket
Give a bouquet of flowers
Give a letter of accommodation or reference for employment

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