Social Change
Written by Tim Buckley, January 2023
“Social change is like turning an ocean liner around. It takes time.
Maybe that depends on the size of the boat, what kind of power you’re using, and who is running the ship.”
The Hallman Neighborhood Family Council, for example, has been at the helm of a social change project for less than three years, COVID included. In that time:
According to Hallman neighborhood residents, crime, gang violence and drug use has dramatically decreased at their nearby city park
The number of reported childhood/family homeless cases in the Hallman community have decreased by close to 50%. Referrals for Precariously Housed children and families has increased but the quick referral time from community partners and wrap around services has prevented nearly all of these families from becoming homeless
Child readiness for kindergarten has grown significantly, based on the number of parents who have completed a novel Ready for Kindergarten curriculum, through which parents teach literacy, math, social and self-regulation skills to their children
Neighborhood civic involvement in neighborhood activities has skyrocketed, with dozens of new volunteer parents and hundreds of family members taking part regularly
A City of Salem bond measure was recently passed, which included funding for bathroom facilities at Northgate Park
“The success we’ve seen in this short time wouldn't have been possible without the Hallman Neighborhood Family Council’s work,” said Jim Seymour, who directs the Community Business & Education Leaders (CBEL) Collaborative. The Collaborative is a group of volunteers whose purpose is to build community resilience, strengthen families, and support world class education in Salem and Keizer.
“The success we’ve seen in this short time wouldn't have been possible without the Hallman Neighborhood Family Council’s work,” said Jim Seymour, who directs the Community Business & Education Leaders (CBEL) Collaborative. The Collaborative is a group of volunteers whose purpose is to build community resilience, strengthen families, and support world class education in Salem and Keizer.
Image: Hallman Neighborhood Family Council, 2022
The CBEL plan calls for supporting families living in Salem and Keizer neighborhoods, defined by elementary school boundaries, beginning with those neighborhoods where children and families are facing the most adversity.
The Building Community Resilience (BCR) model was developed by Dr. Wendy Ellis, director of the Center for Community Resilience at George Washington University. She coined the term “Pair of ACES”, to describe the kinds of factors that combine to create chronic poverty, poor academic achievement and less economic success in significant parts of our nation.
The first “ACE” stands for Adverse Childhood Experiences, such as maternal depression, domestic abuse, divorce, mental illness, etc. The second “ACE” stands for Adverse Community Environments, including poor housing quality, violence, discrimination and more.
The CBEL Collaborative puts the voices of neighborhood residents at the heart of all efforts, with the assumption that civic engagement, connected systems, and equity are the key ingredients of community resilience.
The CBEL Collaborative has identified four key quality of life outcomes that building community resilience, strengthening families, and supporting world class education aim to achieve. These are that every Salem and Keizer child:
grows up in a safe, stable, nurturing home
enjoys good health
succeeds in school, and
goes on in life to become financially self-sufficient
In Salem, the Hallman neighborhood in northeast Salem was the pilot.
Image: Kennedy Neighborhood Family Council, 2022
The next to engage in the CBEL project was the Kennedy neighborhood, which founded their Neighborhood Family Council in summer of 2022.
For more information, contact Jim Seymour at jims@mwinv.com