Caring Communities

Our Caring Communities team works with Springfield Public Schools to implement programming to create positive outcomes for kids and families. We focus on mentoring and youth development, social emotional learning, crisis intervention and case management for families, and support to neighborhood groups and organizations.

For more information, contact Brooke Ash at bash@cpozarks.org.

Caring Communities Initiatives

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Mentoring and Youth Development

Mentor SGF primarily focuses on providing services to K-12 Springfield Public Schools students. These services seek to provide underserved students with opportunities to connect with a mentor and build a relationship that will positively impact their lives.  Opportunities provided include After School Clubs, Brother-2-Brother, Bulldog Basketball Academy, one-on-one mentoring and other small skill building groups. These opportunities focus on social emotional learning and improving outcomes for youth and families.

 

Community-Based Social Work

Our Community-Based Social Worker, in collaboration with our School-Based Social Work program, provides support to students, families, school staff and the community. The Community-Based Social Worker assesses needs and provides resources and referrals to other community organizations.

 

Community Development

We assess the needs of Springfield neighborhoods and support them by coordinating educational and networking opportunities, special events, and other activities. Some of these events and activities include National Night Out, the annual Neighborhood Organization Volunteer Awards banquet and an annual Neighborhood Leadership Summit. We work with community groups to identify solutions to chronic nuisance properties and gaps in affordable housing. These solutions create strategies to address the issues while securing and leveraging resources.

 

Neighborhood Clean Ups

We facilitate neighborhood clean-ups for recognized neighborhood associations in Springfield so that residents can dispose of yard waste, old furniture, construction debris and much more free of charge. Neighborhood clean ups remove hundreds of tons of trash and help keep our community clean for everyone to live, work and play safely. These events are made possible through our partnership with the City of Springfield, Computer Recycling Center and Republic Services.

For more information, contact Dylan Millikin at dmillikin@cpozarks.org

For more information, contact, Brooke Ash, Director of Caring Communities, bash@cpozarks.org.