Promise Neighborhoods

 I’ve been reading up on Promise Neighborhoods. Promise Neighborhoods are geographical locations where a “conveyor belt” of educational opportunities are made available from “cradle to grave.” The fundamental premise is that education is the force that raises people from poverty; with an education, they make more money as adults, and weather the storms of economic crises with much more resilience. I agree with this approach: Education opens the doors of opportunity.

Two points stand out about the Promise Neighborhoods. First, community collaborations must be a priority. No one individual or organization can hope to accomplish everything that needs to be done without accessing community resources. And once accessed, those resources must be able to dovetail their efforts to provide smooth, continuous support over years of changes. Finding a technology infrastructure (such as ClientTrack) that will optimize these collaborative efforts is critical to the overall success of these programs. The ability to effectively gather, use, and report client information is paramount.

Second, organizations must be able to implement evidence-based practices that rely on measuring outcomes. This is nothing new. But, what is new is the accountability and the financial implications of failure to demonstrate evidence-based practices. For the children’s sake, they need the best services we can provide. And, to assess the effectiveness of services, organizations need “real time,” ad hoc reports that let them know when to stay the course and when to make a course correction.

What are your thoughts on the Promise Neighborhoods? What will be their biggest benefits and their biggest challenges?