Building Effective Community Partnerships

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Building Effective Community Partnerships
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Why do we need Partners?

• Transition has to focus on the entire person
• Reentry is a multi-faceted issue that requires
  multi-faceted solutions
• It allows us to focus on what we know how to do
  best and what we have been mandated and funded to
  do

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What is a Partnership?

• A group of leaders who use an inclusive
  strategy to establish shared goals and agree to
  use their personal and institutional power to
  achieve them
• Institute for Educational Leadership

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Steps to Building Partnerships

• Small group of leaders form around a common focus
• Identify additional partners
• Get Ready for Action
• Implementation or Action

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Key Questions

• Do we have a common understanding of the issues,
  problems, opportunities?
• How do we define success and how do we measure
  it?
• Have we created a culture where mistakes and
  failures are allowed and do we learn from it?
• Who does what, when, where? Do we have MOUs?

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Sustaining Momentum Warning!

• Its not about the MONEY, but
• After initial flurry of excitement, your
  partnerships will wane
• Beware of institutionalizing the strategy

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Sustaining Momentum - Ideas

• Expand geographical reach
• Develop new and non-traditional partners
• Deepen and broaden the focus
• Revisit the initial agreement, focus and renew
  commitments
• Collaborate with other partnerships
• Develop graceful EXIT Strategy

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Durham County Reentry

• 2000
• Criminal Justice Resource Center (CJPP)
• Division of Community Corrections
• Durham Police Department
• Parole and Post-Release Commission

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Durham County Reentry

• 2001
• Criminal Justice Resource Center
• Division of Community Corrections
• Durham Police Department
• Parole Commission
• Greater Durham Chamber of Commerce
• Community College, Vocational Rehab Services,
  Weed and Seed

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Durham County Reentry

• 2002
• CJRC, DCC, Parole Commission
• Chamber of Commerce, Community College,
  Vocational Rehab Services
• City of Durham Police, Weed Seed, PSN
• Religious Coalition for a Non-Violent Durham,
  Durham Congregations in Action

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Durham County Reentry

• 2004
• CJRC, DCC, Parole Commission
• Chamber of Commerce, Community College,
  Vocational Rehab Services
• City of Durham, Police, Weed Seed, PSN
• Religious Coalition for a Non-Violent Durham,
  Durham Congregations in Action
• Going Home Initiative, TASC, Job Link

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Durham County Reentry

• 2007
• CJRC, DCC, Parole Commission
• Chamber of Commerce, Community College,
  Vocational Rehab Services
• City of Durham, Police, Weed Seed, PSN,
  Workforce Development Board
• Religious Coalition for a Non-Violent Durham
• Going Home Initiative, TASC, Job Link
• Durham Affordable Housing Coalition, other
  housing providers
• The Durham Center

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Durham County Reconciliation and Reentry Ministry

• Initial Partners and Sponsors
• Durham Congregations in Action
• Religious Coalition for a Non-Violent Durham
• Durham County CJRC

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Durham County RR Ministry

• Partnership Steps
• Shared Vision
• Developed mutual understanding and appreciation
  of each others work
• Identified existing gaps
• Developed Program Idea
• Developed Training Manual
• Developed MOU
• Ready for Action

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Durham County RR Ministry

• Partners
• Durham Congregations in Action
• Criminal Justice Resource Center
• United Christian Campus Ministry, NCCU
• Parents of Murdered Children
• PROUD
• Workforce Development Board
• Project Safe Neighborhoods
• NC Conference United Methodist Church
• Individual Area Churches
• End Poverty Group
• Duke Divinity School

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Words of Wisdom

• Be honest, but gentle
• Do no harm, and protect each other from
  making mistakes
• Keep your agreements
• Respect each others boundaries and professional
  knowledge
• Dont take your partners for granted