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Thursday, March 20, 2014
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Underrepresented Groups
As you identify stakeholders, they will include groups that are typically underrepresented and underserved in your city and whose voices are often not included in planning or heard on issues. Interestingly, these groups are often disproportionately affected by some of the issues or problems that affect a city’s overall population.
Underserved groups may include, but are not limited to:
-Youths
-Seniors
-People with disabilities
-Low-income and working poor
-Impoverished and/or homeless
-Immigrants
-People for whom English is second language
-Single parents
-Veterans
-Racial or ethnic minority groups
-Religious minority groups
-Members of the gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender community
-People with limited education or literacy
Participation of Underrepresented Groups
-Ask intermediary community groups to identify respected groups or leaders within underrepresented groups in your city.
-Develop partnerships with groups to assure representation.
-Invite leaders to participate or identify a representative to participate in the Cities of Service Initiative.
-Utilize leaders and groups to hold meetings in communities where underrepresented populations may be reached to ensure that they are a part of the process.
-Increase underrepresented groups’ participation so they have an impact on decisions.
Outreach to Underrepresented Stakeholders
In order to successfully reach underrepresented stakeholders, you need to build trusting relationships with members of the community and develop reliable contacts among the groups. The following guidelines may be useful:
Do your homework. Make every attempt to know and understand your audience.
Take the time to understand cultural differences and be aware of different styles of communication.
Work with a leader or an influential member of the group.
Organize a team of local community members to advise you.
Establish an alliance/coalition; include other agencies and community groups, businesses, and civic groups.
Share the stage with community leaders.
Ask your contact to accompany you at meetings to increase your credibility among other members of the community.
This helps build your advisor’s confidence in your intentions and honesty.
Allow the community leader to take a leadership role in the process, rather than appearing to follow your lead.
Host meetings in locations that are comfortable and convenient.
Establish trust; be patient and move slowly if cultural differences are great.
Encourage groups to identify their needs using their own language and terms.
Avoid using slang terms or agency jargon.
Ask groups to establish goals, be willing to help, and try to connect these goals with the project’s vision.
When holding meetings, public forums, focus groups, or neighborhood hearings, be sure you provide the following:
-The opportunity for verbal and written feedback
-Multimedia presentations
-Multilingual translators
-Sign-language interpreters
-Accessible locations without physical barriers
-Child care
-Refreshments
-Accessibility via public transportation
Meet and relate to people where they are and not where or how you think they should be.
-Use visual and hands-on methods of educating and informing.
-When written communication is necessary, translate material into clear language written at a sixth-grade level, the standard for communicating with any group. Be aware of the language(s) used in the community, and provide materials in native languages when possible. Don’t make a big issue of it.
-Consider accessibility. When using telecommunication, ensure that TDD/TTY telephones are available. Will materials be made available in alternative formats?
-Also ensure that low-income groups have access to telephones if using this as a primary form of communication. One source for telephones for low-income residents is SafeLink.
Take your time, be patient, and remain practical.
-Make sure that any plans include strategies that allow people to help themselves.
-When working with some Native American tribes, you may need to work systematically with tribal members before working with tribal leaders. The same may be true in working with different community leaders or community icons.
-Native American tribal governments are considered domestic sovereign nations and should be treated as such in order to work successfully with them.
Source:
Techniques for Adapting to Cultural Differences, National Association of Conservation Districts, 1994
Underserved groups may include, but are not limited to:
-Youths
-Seniors
-People with disabilities
-Low-income and working poor
-Impoverished and/or homeless
-Immigrants
-People for whom English is second language
-Single parents
-Veterans
-Racial or ethnic minority groups
-Religious minority groups
-Members of the gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender community
-People with limited education or literacy
Participation of Underrepresented Groups
-Ask intermediary community groups to identify respected groups or leaders within underrepresented groups in your city.
-Develop partnerships with groups to assure representation.
-Invite leaders to participate or identify a representative to participate in the Cities of Service Initiative.
-Utilize leaders and groups to hold meetings in communities where underrepresented populations may be reached to ensure that they are a part of the process.
-Increase underrepresented groups’ participation so they have an impact on decisions.
Outreach to Underrepresented Stakeholders
In order to successfully reach underrepresented stakeholders, you need to build trusting relationships with members of the community and develop reliable contacts among the groups. The following guidelines may be useful:
Do your homework. Make every attempt to know and understand your audience.
Take the time to understand cultural differences and be aware of different styles of communication.
Work with a leader or an influential member of the group.
Organize a team of local community members to advise you.
Establish an alliance/coalition; include other agencies and community groups, businesses, and civic groups.
Share the stage with community leaders.
Ask your contact to accompany you at meetings to increase your credibility among other members of the community.
This helps build your advisor’s confidence in your intentions and honesty.
Allow the community leader to take a leadership role in the process, rather than appearing to follow your lead.
Host meetings in locations that are comfortable and convenient.
Establish trust; be patient and move slowly if cultural differences are great.
Encourage groups to identify their needs using their own language and terms.
Avoid using slang terms or agency jargon.
Ask groups to establish goals, be willing to help, and try to connect these goals with the project’s vision.
When holding meetings, public forums, focus groups, or neighborhood hearings, be sure you provide the following:
-The opportunity for verbal and written feedback
-Multimedia presentations
-Multilingual translators
-Sign-language interpreters
-Accessible locations without physical barriers
-Child care
-Refreshments
-Accessibility via public transportation
Meet and relate to people where they are and not where or how you think they should be.
-Use visual and hands-on methods of educating and informing.
-When written communication is necessary, translate material into clear language written at a sixth-grade level, the standard for communicating with any group. Be aware of the language(s) used in the community, and provide materials in native languages when possible. Don’t make a big issue of it.
-Consider accessibility. When using telecommunication, ensure that TDD/TTY telephones are available. Will materials be made available in alternative formats?
-Also ensure that low-income groups have access to telephones if using this as a primary form of communication. One source for telephones for low-income residents is SafeLink.
Take your time, be patient, and remain practical.
-Make sure that any plans include strategies that allow people to help themselves.
-When working with some Native American tribes, you may need to work systematically with tribal members before working with tribal leaders. The same may be true in working with different community leaders or community icons.
-Native American tribal governments are considered domestic sovereign nations and should be treated as such in order to work successfully with them.
Source:
Techniques for Adapting to Cultural Differences, National Association of Conservation Districts, 1994
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Name Giveaway.... Phil George
Name Giveaway is a Poem by Phil George.. Read it.. and Blog about what you think this means.. be ready to discuss in class..
That teacher gave me a new name ... again.
She never even had feasts or a giveaway!
Still I do not know what "George" means;
And now she calls me "Phillip."
TWO SWANS ASCENDING FROM STILL WATERS
must be a name too hard to remember.
That teacher gave me a new name ... again.
She never even had feasts or a giveaway!
Still I do not know what "George" means;
And now she calls me "Phillip."
TWO SWANS ASCENDING FROM STILL WATERS
must be a name too hard to remember.
I am Assignment..
I am Chicana
Don't call me Hispanic. Don't call me.....Latina... Don't call me Mexican American. I want to be called Chicana. I am metiza-indigenous and Spanish. My heritage is struggle and strength. I join my strength and struggle to that of my hermanas, my sisters. I am a woman of Aztlan, southwestern.. Unites States..... I don't want to be called Hispanic because I don't want people to tell me who I am and where I come from.
Most of all, Of the people who call me Hispanic do not know that " Hispanic" is a term imposed on Americans of Latin decent by federal regulators, unprepared educators, and merchants who want our money but not with us. In the mid 1970's, the U.S Census Bureau first admitted that it's 1970 census had seriously under counted the people of Latin America decent in the... United States... Under the pressure from Latino activists'avoid a repetition of that mistake in the 1980 head count, the bureau searched for an all-encompassing word to describe the diverse assortment of Latin Americans living in this country: Mexican Americans and Mexican citizens, Puerto Rican and Cuban Americans and "other Hispanics" was the Census Bureau's Solution.
The term "Hispanic" denies my cultural heritage. However, a Chicana is both Hispanic and Indian. For the Chicana, her world has been shaped by historical forces beyond the barrio and this country. My ancestors are the Conquistadores and they conquered indigenous people in 1492. Our vanquished heritage has always haunted us and has been ignored by American Historians.
By: Martha Langarica
Don't call me Hispanic. Don't call me.....Latina... Don't call me Mexican American. I want to be called Chicana. I am metiza-indigenous and Spanish. My heritage is struggle and strength. I join my strength and struggle to that of my hermanas, my sisters. I am a woman of Aztlan, southwestern.. Unites States..... I don't want to be called Hispanic because I don't want people to tell me who I am and where I come from.
Most of all, Of the people who call me Hispanic do not know that " Hispanic" is a term imposed on Americans of Latin decent by federal regulators, unprepared educators, and merchants who want our money but not with us. In the mid 1970's, the U.S Census Bureau first admitted that it's 1970 census had seriously under counted the people of Latin America decent in the... United States... Under the pressure from Latino activists'avoid a repetition of that mistake in the 1980 head count, the bureau searched for an all-encompassing word to describe the diverse assortment of Latin Americans living in this country: Mexican Americans and Mexican citizens, Puerto Rican and Cuban Americans and "other Hispanics" was the Census Bureau's Solution.
The term "Hispanic" denies my cultural heritage. However, a Chicana is both Hispanic and Indian. For the Chicana, her world has been shaped by historical forces beyond the barrio and this country. My ancestors are the Conquistadores and they conquered indigenous people in 1492. Our vanquished heritage has always haunted us and has been ignored by American Historians.
By: Martha Langarica
Monday, November 29, 2010
First Assignment...
A blog is your very own, personal online journal. It is public, in that I and your classmates can read it and comment on it, but it is your space and you can control most everything about it. (If you want to make it private so that *only* members of this class can read it, I can show you how to do so).
In the context of this course, your blog has two purposes:
1) Your blog will provide a space for you to keep all of your Talking Points assignments over the course of our semester together. You will not hand in written assignments to me each week; rather you will post them on your blog. In this sense, your blog is merely your assignment notebook that you will use as you read and prepare for class each week. You will also be posting any additional thoughts you have: responses to class discussion, after thoughts, things you forgot to say in class, relevant experiences you have, etc.
2) Creating your own blog will also introduce you to the blogisphere if you don't know this place already. I hope that you will discover creative educational uses for this online medium. You will see how easy it is to use blogger.com, and perhaps it will inspire you to bring blogs into your own classroom someday.
To start your own blog, you will go to:
www.blogger.com
The big orange box at the top right of the page will direct you to creating your own blog on a site called blogspot.com. Follow the instructions to open up a free account. Don't forget your Username and Password!! You will need them to login everytime.
As you fill in the info, you will be asked to name your blog. This title will appear at the top of your blog. (Mine is called "FNED 346 — Fall 2009")
Then, you need to choose an address:
http://_______.blogspot.com
This will be the web address associated with your site. you can call it anything you like. Be clever or simple (or both) -- it is up to you.
You will also need to choose a design template for your blog. Look through the options listed and see what appeals to you. You can change this later and can even find fun, creative templates at sites like PYZAM.
Once you have the account set up, you can start posting. A “posting” is an entry on your blog. (For clarification, you have one blog, but many postings). Give the post a title and then compose as you would any journal entry. When you are finished, hit the button at the bottom that says Publish Post. It will not appear on your blog until you publish it. You can always go back and edit old posts and create new ones.
Your First Post:
Your first post should be a short introduction to you: who are you, how your semester is going so far, what do you do when you are not in class, etc. (Just a short paragraph — no big deal). You will post the rest of the entries as they are due (see course syllabus for dates), or whenever you have something to say!
When you are done creating your site and posting your first entry, please come back to this blog and post a comment at the end of my first posting (scroll down) that includes your blog address so that I can post it in the link list to the right.
Some Tips and Helpful Hints:
Once you are in your blog, look at the top right corner of the screen. If you click on the word CUSTOMIZE, you will be able to make design changes, create new posts, edit old posts, etc.
Once you are in the CUSTOMIZE screen, you can do all kinds of things to make your blog a bit more interesting. Change your fonts and colors, edit a post, change your settings. See the tabs at the top of the screen for all kinds of options.
Poke around online and make a list of websites related to education, diversity, social justice or anything else relevant and post them on your blog. You can add all kinds of things by ADDING A GADGET from your LAYOUT tab.
Just do the best you can with this. If you get stuck, don't fret... I am happy to help you anytime as you work on getting this started. Send me an email, come see me in office hours, or grab me after class. And remember: you can't break it. It is just a blog. Everything can be changed if need be!
In the context of this course, your blog has two purposes:
1) Your blog will provide a space for you to keep all of your Talking Points assignments over the course of our semester together. You will not hand in written assignments to me each week; rather you will post them on your blog. In this sense, your blog is merely your assignment notebook that you will use as you read and prepare for class each week. You will also be posting any additional thoughts you have: responses to class discussion, after thoughts, things you forgot to say in class, relevant experiences you have, etc.
2) Creating your own blog will also introduce you to the blogisphere if you don't know this place already. I hope that you will discover creative educational uses for this online medium. You will see how easy it is to use blogger.com, and perhaps it will inspire you to bring blogs into your own classroom someday.
To start your own blog, you will go to:
www.blogger.com
The big orange box at the top right of the page will direct you to creating your own blog on a site called blogspot.com. Follow the instructions to open up a free account. Don't forget your Username and Password!! You will need them to login everytime.
As you fill in the info, you will be asked to name your blog. This title will appear at the top of your blog. (Mine is called "FNED 346 — Fall 2009")
Then, you need to choose an address:
http://_______.blogspot.com
This will be the web address associated with your site. you can call it anything you like. Be clever or simple (or both) -- it is up to you.
You will also need to choose a design template for your blog. Look through the options listed and see what appeals to you. You can change this later and can even find fun, creative templates at sites like PYZAM.
Once you have the account set up, you can start posting. A “posting” is an entry on your blog. (For clarification, you have one blog, but many postings). Give the post a title and then compose as you would any journal entry. When you are finished, hit the button at the bottom that says Publish Post. It will not appear on your blog until you publish it. You can always go back and edit old posts and create new ones.
Your First Post:
Your first post should be a short introduction to you: who are you, how your semester is going so far, what do you do when you are not in class, etc. (Just a short paragraph — no big deal). You will post the rest of the entries as they are due (see course syllabus for dates), or whenever you have something to say!
When you are done creating your site and posting your first entry, please come back to this blog and post a comment at the end of my first posting (scroll down) that includes your blog address so that I can post it in the link list to the right.
Some Tips and Helpful Hints:
Once you are in your blog, look at the top right corner of the screen. If you click on the word CUSTOMIZE, you will be able to make design changes, create new posts, edit old posts, etc.
Once you are in the CUSTOMIZE screen, you can do all kinds of things to make your blog a bit more interesting. Change your fonts and colors, edit a post, change your settings. See the tabs at the top of the screen for all kinds of options.
Poke around online and make a list of websites related to education, diversity, social justice or anything else relevant and post them on your blog. You can add all kinds of things by ADDING A GADGET from your LAYOUT tab.
Just do the best you can with this. If you get stuck, don't fret... I am happy to help you anytime as you work on getting this started. Send me an email, come see me in office hours, or grab me after class. And remember: you can't break it. It is just a blog. Everything can be changed if need be!
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