The Plan & Outcomes
CREATING A CULTURE OF ACHIEVEMENT
Inspired by the success of the Harlem Children’s Zone (HCZ) in New York City, Minneapolis community organizations began gathering in late 2007 to form a collaborative effort that could translate and apply the promise of the HCZ to the Northside. Today, after two years of collaborative visioning and planning, the Northside Achievement Zone is operational and striving to guarantee opportunities, support and education for all children growing up within its boundaries. The Zone covers 255 square blocks in North Minneapolis most impacted by crime, violence and poverty and is bounded by 35th Avenue on the north, West Broadway on the south, I-94 on the east, and Penn Avenue on the west.
The mission of the Northside Achievement Zone is to align resources and opportunities to meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of all children (birth to 18) within its boundaries so they may grow into fulfilled, responsible, and productive members of our community. The primary goal is to ensure that all of the children residing within its borders are fully prepared for and ready to succeed in college.
In order to achieve such an ambitious goal, the collaborative has defined three areas of strategic focus:
1. Strategic Coordination– By building a coalition of existing area service providers, NAZ will revolutionize the way non-profits and community organizations work together and refocus their efforts around clear outcomes for families and children in the Zone.
2. Educational Impact– By identifying best-practices for educating low-income, minority students and advocating for their implementation in schools across the Zone, NAZ will eliminate disparities and increase overall educational achievement.
3. Family Engagement– By bringing much needed resources and opportunities directly to families living in the Zone, NAZ will engage families in their children’s success, thus creating a culture of achievement and hopeful expectation for all youth.
OUTCOMES
As each of the three strategic areas develops and implements its activities and strategic outcomes, the combined effort will result in significant outcomes for kids in the Zone including such measures as:
- Kids enter kindergarten ready to learn
- Critical mass of families expect kids to go to college
- Students in the Zone demonstrate proficiency at or above grade levels in reading, technology and math
- Schools serving kids in Zone are partnering with NAZ
- Combined resources of organizational partners meet needs to scale of kids in NAZ and are aligned to promote college readiness
- SAT or ACT scores of kids in NAZ begin to show college readiness
- Kids successfully make the transition to college