Summary of May 12, 2012 Urbana Youth Summit
June 5, 2012
Introduction
Lierman Avenue in east Urbana has had its share of crime, unemployment, and violence. These problems
have also affected the young people who live there. Police confirm that there are many service calls to this
area and these problems often affect neighbors in the adjoining Amvets2 neighborhood to the south.
To address these concerns, group of citizens from the Amvets2 Neighborhood Watch and the Lierman
Neighborhood Action Council (LNAC) approached City of Urbana staff from the Community Development
department about providing programs for youth in this area. A planning committee composed of neighbors,
city council members, city staff and youth leaders formed with its first meeting on February 1, 2012. At that
meeting the committee agreed that bringing parents, youth, social service providers and schools together
would be a good way to identify needs in an authentic way.
Over the next several months, the committee agreed that the youth needed a safe place to meet and engage in
a wide range of recreational, artistic and academic activities. The conference purpose was to “bring parents,
youth and agencies together to brainstorm ideas for afterschool and summer activities for Urbana Middle
School and High School Youth.” The committee wanted the conference to be located in the Lierman area
and Pastor Andrew Rogers offered the Living Hope Four Square Church at 2101 East Washington Street as
the conference site.
I. Conference.
Approximately 65 people attended at least part of the conference, which was opened with a welcome from
Mayor Laurel Prussing. Torance Douse, Choir Director of Urbana High School, and Javae Wright, CEO of
Lead4Life, provided the audience with a high-energy musical opening that set the pace. (See
http://urbanaillinois.us/residents/urbana-public-television/government-access/urbana-youth-summit-2012 to view the music and other
scenes from the conference.)
The conference itself was structured to collect as much information as possible about the need of youth in
this area. Initially, adult and youth groups were separated to ensure that both were free to talk and share.
Torance Douse and Javae Wright facilitated the youth discussions. Ann Silvis, Theresa Mickelson, Diane
Marlin, Robin Arbiter and Dennis Roberts facilitated the adult sessions. The summary of these discussions
follows.
II. Break Out Session Summaries.
There were a total of three break-out sessions during the conference. The morning session addressed
problems youth face that need to be addressed as well as barriers to successful youth programming.
Comments are reported and grouped in general categories and combine the concerns of both adults and
youth.
Page 1 of 9
A. Problems/Barriers for Youth Programming.
Behavior: Fighting, Littering, Profanity, Gangs
Community Concerns:
o Renters can feel unconnected to the community; Transient neighbors.
o Renters don't always feel they have a voice
o
o
o
Renters aren't connected to neighborhoods the same way as owners but need to find ways to
connect them to neighborhoods and feel ownership
Often don't know neighbors
Bad landlords; distressed housing is a challenge
General:
o
o
o
o
o
o
Youth need commitment and enthusiasm about the program
If programs are perceived by youth as more preventive than beneficial they won’t be
successful
Youth need guidance towards goals
Available programs need to be affordable
"The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.”
Interactions with the police may be problematic for some.
Resiliency: Kids lack a sense of self. Kids often are not able to persevere and overcome obstacles
Resources:
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Resources (e.g. park district) not allocated appropriately
Neighbors lack skills to intervene appropriately and safely
No place to play/gather
Lack of employment/training opportunities
Lack of addiction and mental health services
Not always easy for parents in east Urbana to get to resources. Need to be available locally.
Lack of youth resources
“Nothing to do”
Schools:
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Schools can show lack of trust of parents
Large gap between advanced students and regular students
Lack focus
Too many warnings
Unequal treatment from teachers
Lack of discipline
Gossip
Disrespect
Unsupervised Time:
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o
o
o
Kids have too much free time
Unsupervised kids can cause problems in the neighborhood
“There is nothing to do.”
See Figure 1 below for a visual representation of the relative importance of these groups of
barriers/problems
Observations. The areas where most problems were identified included, schools, lack of community
and lack of resources. Participant comments about the need for additional resources are to be expected.
However, it is important to carefully consider the comments relating to the neighborhood constellation.
While there are single family homes and home owners in the LNAC area, the neighborhood is comprised
primarily of renters and apartment dwellers. Developing that all-important sense of community cohesion
will need to be done within that context. As we see in the next section of possible solutions, developing a
positive sense of “neighborhood” seems to be almost a prerequisite for youth programming to succeed.
B. Possible Solutions. The afternoon sessions focused on ways to create successful youth
programming. Youth and adults joined together in small groups to develop specific plans. Comments
are reported and grouped in general categories and combine the concerns of both adults and youth.
Successful Academic Programs:
o
o
o
o
Peer Tutoring at Four Square Church
UNCC (UR Movement)
TRIO Program
Principal scholars program
Anti-bullying Efforts:
o
o
o
Have programs that address bullying
Help bullies-they themselves have been hurt
Be stricter about bullying
o
o
o
o
o
Ad book
Arts programming (music studio, arts studio)
Community Access Radio Stations-source of media creation (WEFT, WRFU/IMC)
Create art, e.g., duct tape wallets
Hair art
Arts:
Block Party: (Mentioned three different times as positive activity to build community)
Businesses: Bring family-friendly businesses to the neighborhood
Commitment: Have youth make a commitment
Communication: Be good listeners for kids; Have communication workshops for parents with
certificates of completion (can help build a resume)
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Community-Building:
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Support kid’s ideas
"Hold up the strengths and resources of the neighborhood."
"Treat the disease not the symptoms."
Accept community members as they are and work with them where they are.
Build relationships in the community
Come together for positive activities
Connect to the community
Develop a resource (asset) map of neighborhood
Develop youth connections to the neighborhood
Focus on assets and possibilities
Focus on resources
Focus on strengths
Get to know neighbors
Need a social committee
Neighborhood community building
Neighborhood groups supply organization abilities
Opportunities for community engagement
Take ownership of neighborhoods
Unity in the Community
Invite people to talk about their experiences
General: “Implement all the things we have suggested”; Provide new opportunities.
Government:
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
City can finance groups
City can provide staffing/organization
City needs to finds ways to support neighborhood groups financially (e.g., fund block
parties)
Show neighbors how to file a complaint against landlord or property owner
Provide recreation (park) spaces
Advocate with Urbana Park District. Attend Board meetings to advocate for youth
amenities in LNAC neighborhood. Ask the question: "Will you partner with LNAC to
achieve goals?" e.g., playground, community center.
Large budget spent on pool. What funds are available for other projects?
Develop more recreational resources, e.g., pocket parks
Heath/Nutrition:
o
o
o
o
o
o
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CU PHD-STD/HIV prevention program
Have "fitness stops" along walkways
Gardening
"Soul Food with a Twist"
Breakfast in the Park
GW Carver recipes for sweet potatoes and peanuts
o
o
Healthy cooking
Sports camps throughout the year
Jobs:
o
o
o
o
Create more jobs for youth throughout the year.
Need to re-value the role of skilled trades (welding, building, construction, plumbing,
electricians, drafting, etc.) Eliminated with No Child Left Behind
Partner with a mentor with job skills or do an apprenticeship
Vocational Education is making a comeback: need to reestablish vocational education
programs
Program Development:
o
o
o
o
o
o
Support kids who are not getting into trouble
“Prevention is a turn -off for youth engagement in a program”
Advertise the program as a positive outlet
Engage kids
Find "hooks" that kids are into
Food/Money/Compensation will make it successful
Mentoring/Counseling Efforts:
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Boys and Girls Club
Gentlemen's Club
STEP program
Continuity of mentoring (e.g., CU 1 to 1 Mentoring, UNC)
Mentoring and support
Mentoring is important
More mentoring
Identify mentors/supervisors for the youth who "look like them" e.g., racial identity.
Parents and mentors can be answer to bullying
Community Elements
Parents:
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
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More adults need to be involved in neighborhood activities with kids
Address the needs of blended families
Have parenting workshops with certificates of completion (can help build a resume)
Have public messages about good parenting (e.g., safety and relating positively to kids,
not negative and judgmental)
Help parents understand their kids
Need parenting classes, info and referral from churches
Support parents through neighborhood "adopt a grandma" programs
Address self-worth issues that parents might have
Develop resources and ways to refer parents to resources
Find ways for parents to contribute/demonstrate skills
Find what parents are good at and give them opportunities to show it.
Get buy-in from parents for program to be successful
o
o
o
o
o
Help parents understand their roles as nurturing and guiding kids (empower parents)
Help with setting up own business-be self-supporting
Involve parents (or whoever is serving the parent role) in youth programming
Need to help adults with a criminal history re-integrate into society and work force.
Retraining, job placement, mentoring.
Program for adults also
Police:
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Change relationship with police; some older kids are scared of them
Clarify a citizen response re retaliation
Clarify the METCAD intake process: Will perpetrator know identity of the caller?
Develop positive relationships with police
Teach how to avoid neighbor repercussions
Support families and kids through community policing
Work with Police to clarify the process for citizen referrals-police call procedure
Resiliency:
o
o
o
o
Help youth with personal identity and self-worth issues
Kids need to be empowered: Help build their dreams!
Overcome bullying by helping youth identify inner strengths. Help them find things to
connect to.
Self-worth/self-empowerment/esteem important to be able to stand up to bullying and
Resources:
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Establish a Community Center
"Offer safe places where young people can tell their truths"
Create gathering spaces that are public and neutral
Create places where young people can belong
Develop areas to gather, e.g., benches, playground/ community or resource center
More public walkways through the neighborhoods so they are destinations
Utilize neighborhood churches to host neighborhood programs as possible
Schools: Work with schools to improve relationship with parents
Talent Fair
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Set up talent sharing event/fair
Talent show
Community fairs
Community Talent Fair
Share a skill
Learn about neighbor's talents!
Parents need to be able to display their skills to their kids
Technology: Develop visible and supervised hot spots
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Trust
o
o
o
o
o
o
o
Build trust.
Develop relationships
More trust and respect from adults
Non-minorities can have a role in the program after trust is established.
Minority/non-minority community members each have a role depending on the situation.
Develop relationships where young people feel safe to tell their truths
Develop trust
Volunteering
o
o
o
Provide opportunities for youth to help elders
Get kids to do more community service/cleaning projects
Get kids to help the elderly and reflect on their experiences
See Figure 2 below for a visual representation of the relative importance of these groups of positive
comments/possible solutions.
Observations about Strengths/Solutions. It is interesting to note that there were about three
times as many positive suggestions and comments than there were negative comments and
problems identified. This is partially due to the deliberate decision made by the adult
group in the morning to focus on assets and strengths rather than weaknesses and problems.
The areas seen as most important for program success include community-building, parental
involvement, providing mentoring activities and opportunities, and building trust and
relationships. Resources which will help facilitate these activities may be the ones that are most
beneficial for youth programming efforts for the Lierman area youth.
IV. Initial Outcomes. The Summit had some rather immediate outcomes which include:
1. Thanks to the advocacy of Mayor Prussing, Janice Mitchell, Director of Urbana Neighborhood
Connections, has agreed to host a summer program for kids in grades K through 8. Pastor Rogers has
agreed to host the summer program.
2. LNAC is sponsoring informal arts sessions for neighborhood youth one Saturday a month through
the summer.
V. Future Plans.
1. Try to expand on the work that LNAC is doing with the informal Saturday activity sessions
2. Results of the agency survey indicate that five agencies are interested in collaborating on
programming in the east/southeast Urbana area. The committee will follow up with those groups to
assess interest.
3. Committee members will also contact the new director of the Boy’s and Girl’s Club to assess interest
in working with youth in this area.
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Figure 1. Visual representation of problem areas or barriers identified at the May 12, 2012 Urbana Youth Summit
Page 8 of 9
Figure 2. Visual representation of positive factors/potential solutions identified at the May 12, 2012 Urbana Youth Summit
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