> Home Programs Community Engagement Partnership Together Ohio Community Engagement Partnership Project

Together Ohio Community Engagement Partnership Project

Providing faith-based and other community based organizations with the knowledge and skills needed to build and maintain strong collaborations.

Project Overview
The Together Ohio Community Engagement Partnership Project will bring together the traditional service providers participating in county Family and Children Councils with faith-based and other non-profit organizations.  It is been recognized that faith-based and grassroots non-profit organizations are often more able to represent and reach large numbers of people; this is necessary to achieve a greater impact by fostering sustainable public-private partnerships.

Strategies

• Partnering with county Family and Children First councils and central Ohio-based, Family Comes First, to organize and engage community leaders
• Assessing the needs and readiness of community organizations
• Aligning the goals of county Family and Children First Councils, faith-based and other non-profit organizations making the case for relevance and acceptance to create a greater impact in Ohio communities
• Facilitating a regional advisory team attended by community leaders designed to help them develop a strategic plan by utilizing the resources, solutions and strategies generated by the community
• Offering six free regional capacity building trainings to strengthen Ohio communities
• Promoting the Governor’s "Call to Action", a community engagement effort that recruits mentors, foster and adoptive parents, prison and reentry volunteers and establishes financial education programs, Ohio Benefit Bank sites and summer food programs
• Recruiting a two-person team from each county made up of an FCF Council member and a faith-based community member. These individuals will participate in a Community Engagement Training of Trainer Certificate Process that will build their knowledge and skills so that they can continue serving as a resource/coach during and after the life of this grant
• Providing technical assistance through face to face coaching, phone, email and a web-based “Ask a Coach” component facilitated by seasoned professionals

Regions Funded through The Ohio State University Center for Learning Excellence

Supporting Links:
The Ohio State University Center for Learning Excellence
Ohio Family and Children First
The Governor’s Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives
The Ohio Department of Job and Family Services