Community leaders and activists joined us at the Adler School Thursday to discuss how a collaborative effort might be created to improve the community well-being of Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood.
Where people are born, grow, live, work and age has a profound impact on their mental health and overall well-being. For example:
- Children exposed to community violence exhibit symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
- Abandoned housing provokes anxiety and stress among nearby residents.
- Mass unemployment is associated with high rates of depression.
- Mass incarceration has pervasive effects on communities, economy, and families.
Violence, housing quality, employment status, crime prevention, and opportunity for positive societal reintegration after incarceration–these are among the numerous social determinants of the mental health and well-being of our communities. More than 60 people gathered in Community Hall on Thursday to discuss these issues as they affect Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood and other urban communities, at our “Summit on Proven Approaches for Action Improving Community Well-Being.”
The Adler School has an established tenure working with community well-being in Englewood. For the last six years, the Adler School’s Institutes for Social Change and its Art Therapy Department have worked with residents here and other underserved Chicago communities, public service providers, and community-based organizations to address issues ranging from youth violence to women’s empowerment.
Raymond Crossman, Ph.D., President of Adler School, and Illinois State Sen. Mattie Hunter kicked off Thursday’s summit. “Collaboration is necessary for social change,” Crossman said. “Everyone here has a stake in collaboration.”
Hunter echoed Crossman’s thoughts, saying community groups and agencies, residents, elected officials, businesses and philanthropic organizations must come together in a collaborative effort to improve the Englewood neighborhood. “We need to form a public-private partnership,” she said.
Lynn Todman, Ph.D., executive director of our Institute on Social Exclusion (ISE); Elena Quintana, Ph.D., executive director of our Institute on Public Safety and Social Justice (IPSSJ); and Dan Cooper, M.S., M.U.P.P., assistant director of the IPSSJ, presented research and statistics on the challenges faced by residents living in Englewood. For example, the average vacant housing rate in Englewood is 25 percent, compared to 7 percent for the city of Chicago. And in 2011 (through November), 56 of Chicago’s 419 homicides happened in Englewood.
Joining us along with Sen. Hunter in leading discussion on these issues were our partners and panelists:
With everyone gathered, we examined what is needed to bring about changes in Englewood amid what attendees identified as challenges in the community, including a lack of trust and a code of silence among residents, feelings of hopelessness and powerlessness, and the way the neighborhood is divided up by Chicago’s aldermanic wards.
The summit is a first step in developing a collaborative effort to improve the community wellness in Englewood. Stay tuned for future developments.
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Building Trust, Hope and Empowerment in Englewood
Where people are born, grow, live, work and age has a profound impact on their mental health and overall well-being. For example:
Violence, housing quality, employment status, crime prevention, and opportunity for positive societal reintegration after incarceration–these are among the numerous social determinants of the mental health and well-being of our communities. More than 60 people gathered in Community Hall on Thursday to discuss these issues as they affect Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood and other urban communities, at our “Summit on Proven Approaches for Action Improving Community Well-Being.”
The Adler School has an established tenure working with community well-being in Englewood. For the last six years, the Adler School’s Institutes for Social Change and its Art Therapy Department have worked with residents here and other underserved Chicago communities, public service providers, and community-based organizations to address issues ranging from youth violence to women’s empowerment.
Raymond Crossman, Ph.D., President of Adler School, and Illinois State Sen. Mattie Hunter kicked off Thursday’s summit. “Collaboration is necessary for social change,” Crossman said. “Everyone here has a stake in collaboration.”
Hunter echoed Crossman’s thoughts, saying community groups and agencies, residents, elected officials, businesses and philanthropic organizations must come together in a collaborative effort to improve the Englewood neighborhood. “We need to form a public-private partnership,” she said.
Lynn Todman, Ph.D., executive director of our Institute on Social Exclusion (ISE); Elena Quintana, Ph.D., executive director of our Institute on Public Safety and Social Justice (IPSSJ); and Dan Cooper, M.S., M.U.P.P., assistant director of the IPSSJ, presented research and statistics on the challenges faced by residents living in Englewood. For example, the average vacant housing rate in Englewood is 25 percent, compared to 7 percent for the city of Chicago. And in 2011 (through November), 56 of Chicago’s 419 homicides happened in Englewood.
Joining us along with Sen. Hunter in leading discussion on these issues were our partners and panelists:
With everyone gathered, we examined what is needed to bring about changes in Englewood amid what attendees identified as challenges in the community, including a lack of trust and a code of silence among residents, feelings of hopelessness and powerlessness, and the way the neighborhood is divided up by Chicago’s aldermanic wards.
The summit is a first step in developing a collaborative effort to improve the community wellness in Englewood. Stay tuned for future developments.
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