Talk about immersing oneself in one's work. As Hamilton's Americorps/VISTA Community Outreach Coordinator, Charley Francis '04 has a vested interest in improving the quality of life in the Cornhill section of Utica, one of the poorest neighborhoods in an area marked by poverty, crime and deteriorating property values. Francis himself moved into the area and is working to form a community board there in an effort to give residents a voice in supporting and expanding on the positive things being done in Cornhill. He hopes to bring together different grassroots initiatives and coordinate them to have a long-term effect.
Francis organized a dinner with local residents at a Cornhill church on January 31 to gauge interest in the community board. He reported that more than 40 people attended the dinner: Cornhill residents, local activists, and agency representatives. Hamilton's HAVOC executive board made dinner and attendees discussed what can be done short and long-term to prevent youth from engaging in bad behavior. "We want to take what people are doing and build a network of support," said Francis, who majored in economics and Spanish at Hamilton. "We hope to inspire people to work together on their street and block to do little things to make the neighborhood climate more conducive to positive youth development."
Residents proposed several neighborhood youth initiatives which were not always new programs, but rather consolidations and/or expansions of existing efforts, said Francis. Several residents also committed to being trained in the Communities that Care system, a long-term prevention planning program that equips neighborhoods to work for the reduction of youth risk behavior. Training and technical assistance for this program comes through an agreement with the New York State Office of Alcohol and Substance Abuse Services.
Topics discussed included the strengths of the community, what existing initiatives we can support, and how to listen to what youths need and want. "We made plans to take action both in the short term and in the long term through promoting positive youth activities in the neighborhood and laying the groundwork for a community planning process that will prevent youth problem behavior," Francis said. The group will meet again for brunch on Saturday, Feb. 19 at St. Francis de Sales Parish Center. A February 16 breakfast is also planned for key government, agency, and foundation leaders to introduce them to the project and give them the chance to be involved.
AmeriCorps is a network of national service programs that engage more than 50,000 Americans each year in intensive service to meet critical needs in education, public safety, health, and the environment. AmeriCorps members serve through more than 2,100 nonprofits, public agencies, and faith-based organizations. They tutor and mentor youth, build affordable housing, teach computer skills, clean parks and streams, run after-school programs, and help communities respond to disasters.
For more than 35 years, AmeriCorps*VISTA members have been helping bring individuals and communities out of poverty. Today, nearly 6,000 AmeriCorps*VISTA members serve in hundreds of nonprofit organizations and public agencies throughout the country -- working to fight illiteracy, improve health services, create businesses, increase housing opportunities.
