Grantee Learning Logs

To create a shared community vision for the Seven Mile Creek watershed, establish a watershed council to implement the community vision and build the relationships necessary to sustain watershed rehabilitation efforts into the future

To further the Family Tree Clinic's Trans Health Initiative by partnering with community stakeholders to pilot an informed consent hormone access project to provide high-quality, transgender affirming and affordable health care

To develop an appropriate legal entity under the Oglala Sioux Tribe to oversee water, sewer and solid waste operations and infrastructure improvement

To move rural communities forward by creating opportunities for improved housing stability and economic development

To foster capacity building and partnerships among cross-cultural community stakeholders, eliminating racial and socio-economic disparities

To test whether reliance on transportation options rather than car ownership builds assets for lower-income households working toward economic self-sufficiency

To host monthly Community Action sessions, bringing people together to address needs and concerns around economic development, affordable housing, transportation and social services

To bring together diverse stakeholders from medical, insurance, advocacy and cultural communities to create and test maternal health solutions which are accessible, culturally acceptable and financially sustainable

To implement a Community Paramedic program that will fill gaps in and improve the region's health care system

To engage the community in a creative placemaking process that includes artist-led 'imagination conversations'

The Standing Rock Sioux Tribe will hold talking circles and lead a community assessment to guide the development of a network of home and community-based service providers who qualify for Medicare and state reimbursement programs. This network will help elders and adults with disabilities in their community continue living independently.

The Autism Society of Minnesota will engage public school educators and parents of and students with disabilities to improve student outcomes in employment and post-secondary education.

Brookings Health System, South Dakota State University and the Brookings Area Chamber of Commerce will partner to organize focus groups and a public event to identify community solutions for supporting breastfeeding women in the workplace and the broader community.

The 'Stand Up ND Project' will foster discussion and raise awareness among children, educators, parents and community members about how to reduce bullying through radio, web, social media and face-to-face events.

Main Street Square will research, develop and implement a successful community arts collaborative and clearinghouse that will create a sustainable, equitable future for the arts and artists in Rapid City.

Four Bands Community Fund, of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, will lead a reservation-wide effort to develop and implement a comprehensive workforce development program. Using a combined place- and sector-based approach, Four Bands will provide training opportunities to increase the capacity of individuals to gain meaningful employment while supporting businesses to build their capacity to effectively hire and retain qualified employees.

The >MN Project' will address rural child care issues by developing regional child care plans in partnership with rural communities, creating business tools to sustain local partnerships, and establishing advisory councils to support the implementation of the plans.

NEON will build a broad coalition of organizations dedicated to increasing employment and economic equality for unemployed/underemployed African American males in North Minneapolis. NEON will engage these stakeholders to build a locally-governed entity that reinforces transparency, accountability, results and shared learning about workforce development.

African Immigrant Services will use community education and engagement to change the roles of African immigrants and other underrepresented groups in the northwest suburbs of Hennepin County from observers to active leaders. They will also identify and match new leaders with positions in public decision-making bodies in which their roles will help advance racial equity.

The 'Brookings Visioning Charrette' will provide residents the opportunity to actively participate in planning the future of their community. In addition, a new cohort of community leaders will be developed.

Northern Lights.mn is partnering with Minnehaha Creek Watershed District to create a large¬scale, multiplayer, experiential watershed education game. The project will connect local communities through shared game play experiences, emphasizing the interdependent nature of water resources and empowering collective action to promote and protect them.

Promise!' is a group within Project Footsteps that is creating a movement dedicated to ending teenage homelessness by partnering with agencies that serve this population. 'Promise!' intends to create leadership councils with each partnering agency that are comprised of homeless teens who are inspired, empowered and prepared to be agents of change.

PACT for Families Collaborative will engage truant youth, their parents, education staff and service providers to redesign services and test strategies for positive, sustainable solutions to truancy.

North Star AISES will support the creation and implementation of a Women's Elder Nibi/Mini Council to uphold the cultural authority of women elders to participate in tribal decisions that impact water on and near reservations in collaboration with scientific experts.

The 'Little Earth Community Health Initiative' seeks and implements solutions to the underlying causes of chronic health conditions in their urban American Indian community through holistic, community-driven processes and projects. Activities will be co-designed with community stakeholders and will include baseline data collection, appreciative learning journeys, communication strategies and the creation of an evaluation framework.

The 'Champion's Initiative' uses athletics as a platform for sexual and domestic violence prevention. It will equip youth athletic coaches with the tools, knowledge, and motivation to role model respect, non-violence, and gender equity.

The ‘NV & Me Project’ will inspire and empower residents to carry out the vision of the North Valley/New Vision 360 process through a micro-grant program and with action teams at various community levels.

Northfield Promise' is a collective impact initiative designed to achieve community-level change for children and youth growing up in Northfield. By aligning all the major community institutions around a shared set of measurable benchmarks, assembling diverse action teams, collecting and sharing data, implementing action plans, and sharing progress with community stakeholders, the project seeks to ensure success for all Northfield youth.

The REAP/Vision West North Dakota 'Plan Director Supports Project' will support volunteer and paid plan directors in 19 western North Dakota counties to implement new county or tribal strategic plans for addressing challenges caused by the oil boom and for sustaining economic viability following the boom.

United Way of Steele County will examine disparities in income, education and health among low-income residents and people of color in Steele County. They will also design and implement a collaborative, multi-sector initiative at the intersection of these disparities to create change in their community.

The Promise Neighborhood – Central Minnesota will lead community engagement and capacity building efforts to achieve educational, economic and community aspirations in the Talahi neighborhood in St. Cloud.

The Vital Aging Network's Wellness 50+ program will engage and train teams of older adults in four communities across Minnesota to lead community–developed wellness initiatives.

The Wagner Area Horizons Team will engage both Native and non-Native people who live in Wagner on the Yankton Sioux Reservation in a series of conversations and workshops about race. This will include developing and sharing a new curriculum for understanding differences in Native and non-Native leadership.

OutFront Minnesota Community Services will work to make schools safe for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) youth by building community-based leadership teams across the state of Minnesota and organizing a youth summit for youth from across the state to share ideas and strategies for making schools safer.

The Fargo-Moorhead Coalition for Homeless Persons (in a formal alliance with the North Dakota Coalition for Homeless People, the West Central Minnesota Continuum of Care and multi-state community partners) will create a coordinated assessment and referral system to more effectively assess, shelter and house people who are experiencing or are at risk of homelessness in their community.

The Saint Paul Art Collective will explore the potential for establishing a community arts center in the Lowertown neighborhood as well as an arts district designation for Lowertown. This exploration will include community engagement, a feasibility study and a report with recommendations for community stakeholders.