Comprehensive Community Initiative models (CCI’s) are community based development approaches that employ diverse strategies to meet the needs of children and families in distressed neighborhoods.

CCI’s involve collaborations between social service agencies, local businesses, governments, foundations, schools, health organizations and neighborhood residents.  CCI’s target a specific geographic community or neighborhood and seek to build and improve all levels of functioning in the community (individual, family, institutional and community-wide functioning).

The Self-Reliant Community Initiative is a localized CCI that will involve a broad range of stakeholders in the Penrose and O’Fallon neighborhoods: faith based organizations, schools, social service agencies, political leaders, governments, private donors, foundations, and neighborhood leadership and residents.

Identified stakeholders will partner to provide funding, governance, direct services and relevant referrals to ensure the success of the SCRI project.  Stakeholders will work to build and improve the infrastructure of the neighborhoods by improving, safety, economic growth, housing, curb appeal and civic involvement.

SCRI Project services will address the well-being of children, adults and families throughout the Penrose and O’Fallon neighborhoods.  Service will include: counseling, case management, training, job placement, after-school care, homeownership assistance, and business development. All services will be provided from a centralized location.

 

Neighborhood Empowerment

Neighborhood empowerment is the ultimate goal of SCRI.  The initiative intends to develop community residents’ skills such that they lead development and positive change.

Therefore, residents will identify their neighborhood’s most pressing social issues, define focused solutions and outline an action plan to improve the neighborhood they love.



Core Principles

SRCI is guided by the following core principles:

1. SRCI will actively engage and involve children, youth, families and other community stakeholders in all project phases and dimensions.

2. Through community participation, SRCI will offer an array of fully-integrated, coordinated and non-duplicated services that are culturally competent, strength-based, relevant and respectful in delivery.

3. Services will be family centered, with an emphasis on changing existing community conditions that impact the healthy development and functioning of children.

4. Services will span five key domains:

Project Planning

The planning phase of SRCI has been underway since fall 2004.  Provident has invested resources in research, review of best practice models, planning, strategy development, and community development training.

In addition, Provident conducted a SWOT analysis of the Penrose/O’Fallon area.  Findings underscored the need to develop a comprehensive community development approach to extend the reach of Provident’s current presence in this community.