Community Action Forums
The Family Success Institute has launched a series of Community Action Forums to redeploy government and philanthropic resources to better address the needs, dreams and aspirations of residents in local communities across New Jersey.
These small group Forums, convened by Learning Community members and others who are trusted in their communities, provide opportunities for residents to come together to talk about the challenges they face and opportunities they need to succeed. Topics include financial security, how to set children up for success and support them as they grow, parent leadership, fatherhood and much more.
The Forums are laying the groundwork for the transformation of how we think about family success. How? By providing a place for community members to define life goals, and propose programs and actions required to achieve them.
Across the state, parents, grandparents, guardians, brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles are joining with other community members who are invested in seeing their children and families succeed.
To date, we have hosted Forums in:
- Asbury Park
- Atlantic City
- Bridgeton
- Burlington
- Camden
- Cherry Hill
- Eatontown
- Elizabeth
- Milltown
- Neptune
- Neptune Township
- Newark
- Paramus
- Paterson
- Penns Grove
- Pennsauken
- Pennsville Township
- Phillipsburg
- Red Bank
- Tinton Falls
- Trenton
- West Long Branch
Take a look at a recent Forum below:
The discussions that occur in these Community Action Forums are informed by policy papers developed by our Learning Community Work Groups. These papers provide the framework for discussion, without limiting the breadth of topics or proposals from members of the community. The insight gleaned from the Forums will directly inform the topics of an upcoming Statewide Summit on Family Success.
Watch Community Action Forum highlights here
To learn more about scheduled Community Action Forums, contact Erica Harris Devalve, FSI Director of Strategic Initiatives, who is leading this project.
Emerging Themes from Community Action Forums
- Frustration with “dead end” resources – Resources exist, but at limited scope, capacity and access
- Concerns about education and school districting
- The intersection of racial, gender and economic oppression