Capstone Interim Report

The Bush School of Government and Public Service
Consulting Capstone
Interim Report
Understanding Poverty in Brazos County
November 2015
Brian Dell, Belen Diez, Whitney Harris, JJ Knechtel, Allison Matthews, William Thompson
T
ABLE OF
C
ONTENTS
Executive Summary ________________________________________________________________________3
Project Roadmap ___________________________________________________________________________5
Literature Review __________________________________________________________________________6
Background ________________________________________________________________________________
6
Housing ___________________________________________________________________________________
10
Hunger ____________________________________________________________________________________
14
Health _____________________________________________________________________________________
17
Education and Youth Development ____________________________________________________
20
Collaboration and Collective Impact ___________________________________________________
22
Strategic Planning for New Program Adoption ________________________________________
25
Research Methodology __________________________________________________________________
27
Research Design__________________________________________________________________________ 30
Current Status_____________________________________________________________________________ 32
Budget Updates___________________________________________________________________________ 32
Data Requested from Bryan-College Station Salvation Army_________________________ 33
Next Steps_________________________________________________________________________________ 33
Conclusion________________________________________________________________________________ 33
Appendix__________________________________________________________________________________ 34
Recommended citation format:

The Bush School of Government and Public Service. (2015). Interim Report: Understanding
Poverty in Brazos County. College Station, TX: Brian Dell et al.
Executive Summary
The BryanCollege Station Salvation Army (BCSSA) engaged our consulting capstone team to
conduct a Mission Planning Study (MPS) to assess povertyrelated needs in Brazos County and
recommend promising program changes and partnerships for BCSSAleaderstoconsiderasthey
plan for the organizations future. We are pleased to present this Interim Report in which we
summarizeourprogressthusfar,sharekeyfindings,andexplainournextsteps.
We begin by reviewing our

Project Roadmap
, which specifies five areas of research: the
BCSSAs current status, the local human services provider landscape, povertyrelated needs in
Brazos County, stakeholder priorities, and evidencebased best practices. We then share major
findings from our
Literature Review
, which synthesizes the academic literature on
evidencebased best practices for human service provision and strategic planning for nonprofit
organizations. We conducted this review before undertaking any data collection to establish
context for the issues of poverty we would be exploring in our community and to inform our
researchstrategy.Keyfindingsfromthereviewinclude:
To address community
housing
needs, a number of human service providers areshifting
from temporary measures such as emergency shelters to longterm solutions such as
permanentsupportivehousingandrentalvouchers.
Human service providers combatting
hunger
have begun to vary the location and
inventory of their food pantries to better meet client needs, but a robust solution to
chronicrelianceonpantrieshasnotyetemerged.
Meeting a communitys
health
needs requires a wide range of organizations working in
collaboration smaller nonprofits unable to deliver clinical care can nevertheless
contributetothiseffortbyprovidinginformationalorsupportservices.
Research on the effectiveness of
education and youth development
programs is sparse,
but early interventions that address literacy, character development, and dropout
prevention appear to hold promise for improving educational outcomes for lowincome
youthinthelongrun.
The recentlydeveloped
collective impact
model allows organizations within a
community to set common goals, generate a strategic plan, and coordinate services to
combatsocialproblemsmoreeffectivelythantheycouldwhenworkinginisolation.
Nonprofit organization leaders contemplating
new program adoption can make a
strategic decision by using New Product Development (NPD) principles, including the
portfoliomanagementapproach,duringtheplanningprocess.
Our Literature Review leads directly to an overview of our

Research Design
, which specifies
our research questions for each element of our Project Roadmap and the data we will collect to
answer those questions. We conclude with an update on the
Current Status
of the Mission
PlanningStudyandanexplanationofthe
NextSteps
weplantotakeinourresearch.
Atimelineforourconsultingprojectisprovidedbelow,followedbykeypointsofinterest.
Keypointsofinterest:
Wedonotcurrentlyanticipateanychangestoouroriginalbudget.
We have made slight modifications to our original project roadmap and research
methodology, as we will discuss below. Nevertheless, we anticipate ontime delivery of
theMissionPlanningStudywithallrequestedcomponents.
We remain committed to providing the BCSSA with highquality, evidencebased

recommendations forits programmingandservices.Welookforwardtoyourfeedbackaboutour
work,bothpastandplanned.
Project Roadmap
The BCSSA provides a wide range of services and impacts a number of different stakeholder
groups. Our team will follow a roadmap to systematically incorporate those elements into the
MPS. The five areas of research reflected on our roadmap originate from the specifications
provided by the BCSSA in Minute 31E, attachment C. With our study focusing on the
subdivisions of the five areas ofresearch,wewillbeabletodevelopacomprehensivereportthat
willenabletheBCSSAtobestutilizeourrecommendations.
Please notethatalthoughouroriginal ScopeofWorkMemoincluded

disasterreliefasaresearch
topic, we have since determined this to be beyond thescopeofthisMissionPlanningStudy.We
understand disaster relief to be an integral component of the Salvation Armys work that the
organization will not substantially modify in the near future. We also recognize that disaster
relief is not as closely related to poverty as the other areas of interest we identified, namely,
housing, hunger, health, and education/youth development. Thus, we have chosen to focus our
resources on those four issues. We did, however, include disaster relief in our initial literature
reviewandhaveincludedourfindingsinanappendixforyourreference.
Literature Review
The BryanCollege Station Salvation Army (BCSSA) stands at a crossroads. For more than 65
years, this human service nonprofit organization has worked to meet human needs in Brazos
County without discrimination. In addition to its disaster relief missions, it has offered a broad
range of services to people in poverty, including emergency rent and utility assistance, a food
pantry, holiday gifts, assistance with medical expenses, and youth development programs.
Through this work, the BCSSA has touched thousands of lives. Still, the organizations leaders
recognize that community needs change over time, and thatpovertyremainsanimmensebarrier
to many people despite the best efforts ofserviceorganizationsliketheirs.Astheydeveloptheir
plans for the future of the BCSSA, they face a crucial question: How can the BCSSA best
leverageitsstrengthstosustainablymeetcommunityneeds?
Our Bush School Capstone Team exists to help the BCSSAs leaders answer that question by
conducting thorough qualitative and quantitative research, then providing recommendations for
optimizing the organizations programs andservicesbasedonourfindings.Theliteraturereview
that follows is the first step in that process. By familiarizing ourselves with extant academic
research on the provision of human services, our team has developed a better understanding of
the context in which the BCSSA operates and the specific needs they serve. Our findings have
helpedusidentifythekeyquestionswewillneedtoexploreasourresearchcontinues.
We begin by establishing the background for this study, focusing on the demographic
composition of Brazos County and the BCSSAs role in thisgeographicarea.Next,weexamine
the specific needs of Brazos County residents and share insights from the academic literature
with regard to four key issues of poverty that the BCSSA currently addresses: housing, hunger,
health, and education/youth development. Next, we overview factors that affect the success and
sustainability of new initiatives. Then, we consider the potential impact of partnerships and
collective impact networks on the work of organizations like the Salvation Army. Finally, we
establish our questions for further research and explain the methods wewillusetoanswerthose
questions.
Background
Brazos County is located in the middle of what is referred to as the Texas Triangle region,
which consists of Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and AustinandhasboundariesofInterstate35,
Interstate 45, and Interstate 10 (the major roadways that connect those cities). It is the 23rd
largest county by population in Texas, anchored by the cities of Bryan (its county seat) and
College Station. According to the United States Census Bureau, Brazos County washometoan
estimated 209,152peoplein2014,basedonthe2010populationof194,851.1ThecitiesofBryan
and College Station make up more than 88 percent of the countys population. As we show in
Table 1, Brazos County is fairly diverse its two major cities, however, have two distinct
demographic patterns when it comes to race and ethnicity. College Station has a significantly
higher proportion of Caucasian residents, while Bryan is more evenly divided between
1
UnitedStatesCensusBureau.2014.AnnualEstimatesoftheResidentPopulation:April1,2010toJuly1,2014.
http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?src=CF.
Caucasian, Hispanic/Latino, and AfricanAmerican residents. There is also a sharp contrast

between thetwocitieswhenitcomesto thosethatareeconomicallydisadvantaged. Seventyfour
percent of Bryan Independent School District students are considered to be economically
disadvantaged, while just 34.5 percent of College Station Independent School District students
are.2 While these proportionsmaybeslightlyinflatedduetodifferencesineligibilitycriteria(the
Free and Reduced Price Lunch program is open to students with a family income that is up to
185 percent of the federal poverty level), this metric is a good indicator of the stark differences
betweenthetwocities.3
Table1.DemographicCompositionofBrazosCounty,Bryan,andCollegeStation
Jurisdiction
Total
Population
%
Caucasian
%
Hispanic/
Latino
%
African
American
%
Asian
American
%Economically
Disadvantaged
K12Students
Brazos
County
194,851
57.2
24.8
11.4
5.6
57.2
Bryan
80,913
43.0
36.2
18.0
1.7
74.0
103,483
68.3
14.0
6.8
9.1
34.5
College
Station
Source:U.S.CensusBureauTexasEducationAgency
Economy
Economically, Brazos County is diverse, but it lags behind the rest of the state in several key
metrics. First, Brazos Countysmedianhouseholdincome from2009to2013was$38,310,more
than $13,000 less than the state average.4 Per capita income over that same time period was
$21,720, nearly $5,000 less than the average across the state.5 In addition, the homeownership
rate in the county issignificantlylower(46percent)thanthatofTexas(63.3percent).6However,
the homeownership rate may be due to the large studentpopulationthatrentswhilelivinginthe
county.
As of 2007, Brazos County is home to nearly 14,000 businesses.7 Although employment is

available in many sectors, the labor market is dominated by three industries. First, the
educational services, healthcare and social assistance industry provides employment for nearly
TexasEducationAgency.2014.Snapshot2014SchoolDistrictProfiles.
http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/perfreport/snapshot/2014/index.html.
3
Cruse,CraigandDavidPowers.2006.
EstimatingSchoolDistrictPovertywithFreeandReducedPriceLunch
Data.
https://www.census.gov/did/www/saipe/publications/files/CrusePowers2006asa.pd
f.
4
UnitedStatesCensusBureau.2015."BrazosCounty,Texas."
http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/48/48041.html.
5
Ibid.
6
Ibid.
7
Ibid.
34 percent of Brazos County.8 This can be explained in part by the presence of Texas A&M
University and Blinn Community College and the large numbers of individuals they employ.In
2013, the Texas A&M system based in the county accounted for more than $4.4 billion in
economic impacts and employed more than 21,000 people.9 Second, the retail industryemploys
10.9 percent of the countys residents. The arts, entertainment, recreation, accommodation and
foodservicesindustriescomeinaclosethirdat10.7percent.10
Poverty
Although Brazos County has significant and diverse economicopportunity,asubstantialportion
of its residents struggle with poverty. Almost 30 percent of individuals are considered to be
below the poverty line. This includes 26.3 percent of those less than the age of18,10.6percent
of those more than age 65, and 15.9 percent of families in Brazos County.11 This rate is higher
than the rate of Texas as a whole, which has a poverty rate of 17.6 percent.12 Minority
populations in the county are much more likely to be affected by this problem. Fortyeight
percent of AfricanAmericans and nearly 29 percent of Hispanics were estimated tobelivingin
poverty in Brazos Countyin2014ascomparedto24percentofCaucasians.13AsshowninTable
1, many schoolaged children in the county find themselves in impoverished or near
impoverishedconditionsaswellandutilizetheFreeandReducedPriceLunchprogram.
BryanCollegeStationSalvationArmy
The Salvation Army has been active in Brazos County since 1949, including the past twenty
years as a local Corps Chapter.14 Before 1995, a Service Unit that was established by Travis
Bryan, Jr. served the area.15 Last year, 19,637 individuals were served by the Brazos County
chapter.16 Their major programs and services currently include a food pantry, rent and utility
assistance, disaster relief efforts, various camps and ministries, a clothing closet, an Angel Tree
programduringtheChristmasseason,andThanksgivingmealsforthosewhoneedthem.17
The Salvation Army can be classified asanonprofitorganizationanda faithbasedorganization.

For the purpose of this review, a nonprofit organization is an organization where profit cannot
8
UnitedStatesCensusBureau.2014.SelectedEconomicCharacteristics:200920135YearAmericanCommunity
Survey.AccessedOctober2015.
http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/
productview.xhtml?src=CF.
9
TexasA&MToday.2014.TexasA&MEconomicImpactLocallyatRecordLevelMoreThan$4.4Billionfor
2013.LastModifiedJanuary29,2014.
http://today.tamu.edu/2014/01/29/texasameconomicimpact
locallyatrecordlevelmorethan44billionfor2013/.
10
UnitedStatesCensusBureau.2014.SelectedEconomicCharacteristics:200920135YearAmerican
CommunitySurvey.
11
CommunitySurvey.
12
UnitedStatesCensusBureau.2015.BrazosCounty,Texas.
13
UnitedStatesCensusBureau.2015.PovertyinthePastTwelveMonths:2014AmericanCommunitySurvey
1YearEstimates.AccessedOctober2015.
http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/
pages/productview.xhtml?src=CF.
14
TheSalvationArmy.2015.OverviewoftheSalvationArmy.Bryan,TX:TheSalvationArmy.
15
Ibid.
16
Ibid.
17
Ibid.
be paid out to owners or anyone else associated with the organization: it mustbedevotedto the
taxexempt purpose of the organization.18 Specifically, as defined by Weisbrod, the Salvation
Army is a collective nonprofit, because it operates in the public interest andprovidesbenefits
to groups and individuals outside of the organization. A faithbased organization is a
religiouslyinfluencedorganizationwithanexplicitservicerelatedmission.19
OurMission
As the data above indicate, Brazos County residents face a number of challenges the
BryanCollege Station Salvation Army may be able to help alleviate.Likemanyother nonprofit
organizations (NPOs), the Salvation Army has adopted a strategic planning framework that it
usestomakedecisionsabouthowitwillmeetcommunityneedsinthefuture.
Strategic planning is a process of organizational change through adisciplinedeffort toproduce

fundamental decisions and actions that shape and guide what an organization is, what it does,
and why it does it.20 In the Salvation Army, local units base their strategic plans on reports
known asMissionPlanningStudies(MPS).AnMPSisa detailedassessmentofalocalSalvation
Armys strengths, trends and outstanding needs in the community it serves, and specific
strategies the organization can use to meet those needs. It includes an uptodate demographic
profile of the community, an overview of the current human service provider landscape withan
emphasis on opportunities for partnership, an assessment of current gaps in service, and an
evaluation of stakeholder perceptions of the Salvation Army and its programs. Our charge is to
execute an accurate, informative MPS for the BCSSA that will allow its leaders to make sound
decisions about adding to, expanding, revising, and dropping programs and services. Since our
clients will use our report as the foundation for longterm planning, we will place strong
emphasis on changes that are strongly aligned with the organizations mission and resources,
supported by key stakeholders, and effective in meeting human needs over the long term rather
thanonatemporarybasis.
Although our MPS will address several major issues of poverty, our team will give particular
attention to the BCSSAs services to the homeless. The Southern Territory Command requires
the units in its jurisdiction to complete an MPS on a routine basis, but particularly when
contemplating a significant expansion of service.21 Our clients are considering just such an
expansion of service. In their Capstone application and initial conversation with our team, they
expressed an interest in establishing a Center of Hope for Brazos County. A Center of Hope
offers housing to homeless people and, depending on the local context, additional services that
support them as they seek a more stable living arrangement. Since communities vary widely in
their needs and preferences, Centers follow a range of patterns, as well. For example, the
Weisbrod,BurtonA.1988.TheRoleoftheNonprofitSector.In
TheNonprofitEconomy
.
Cambridge,Massachusetts:HarvardUniversityPress.
19
Bielefeld,WolfgangandWilliamSuhsCleveland.2013.DefiningFaithBasedOrganizationsandUnderstanding
ThemThroughResearch.
NonprofitandVoluntarySectorQuarterly
,42(3):442467.
20
Golensky,MarthaandCrayA.Mulder.2006.Copinginaconstrainedeconomy:Survivalstrategiesofnonprofit
humanserviceorganizations.
AdministrationinSocialWork30(3):
524,quotingBryson,J.M.1995.
Strategicplanningforpublicandnonprofitorganizations:Aguidetostrengtheningandsustaining
organizationalachievement
.SanFrancisco:JosseyBass.
21
SalvationArmy,SouthernTerritory.n.d.MissionPlanningStudies.Internaldocumentprovidedbyclient.
18
Salvation Army of New Orleans operates a Center that functions as a traditional emergency
shelter,whereclients arepermittedtostay3090days,mustpaya$10feeforeachnightafterthe
tenth night, and lose their spot if they do not check in by 6:00 pm. The Center includes a
Pathway of Hope component for select clients who are working or enrolled in school, but its
main service appears to be the provision of temporaryshelter.22Ontheotherhand, theCenterof
Hope in Temple,Texas,offers rooms forstaysuptooneyearinlengthalongwitheducation,job
training, a health clinic, andassistanceinsecuringpermanenthousing.23Regardlessofthe model
used, Centers of Hope require a significant investment of funding and human resources thus,
local units must conduct careful research before implementing the program. The MPS our team
conducts will help our clients to determine whether their resources and the communitys
priorities support the establishment of a Center of Hope and, if so, what characteristics such a
Centeroughttohave.
To capture the wide range of information our team will provide through this MPS, we have
adopted the following research question: How can the BCSSA best leverage its strengths to
sustainably meet community needs? To understand the context of the BCSSAs work and
prepare forourprimarydatacollection,wehavereviewedtheacademicliterature on anumber of
topics pertinent to this study: housing, hunger, health, education/youth development, strategic
planningforprogramchange,andcollaboration/collectiveimpact.
Housing
There were 175 homeless individuals in the Brazos Valley in 2013.24 AfricanAmericans made
up 58 percent of the unsheltered homeless and 35 percent of the sheltered homeless, and
Caucasians made up 38 percent of the unsheltered population and 63 percent of the sheltered
population.25 Roughly 10 percent of individuals in Brazos Valley26shelterscitementalillnessas
oneofthereasonsthattheyarehomeless.27
Homelessness decreased 11 percent in the United States between 2007 and 2014, but there are
still an average of578,424peoplewhoexperiencehomelessnessonanygivennight.28 Homeless
individuals constitute 63 percent of the homeless population the remaining 37 percent are
22
GreaterNewOrleansSalvationArmy.2015.CenterofHope.AccessedOctober19.
http://salvationarmyalm.org/nola/centerofhope/.
23
CenterofHopeTemple.2015.CenterofHope:Temple.AccessedOctober19.http://centerofhopetemple.com/.
24
Murphy,Ryan,andCorrieMacLaggan.2013.Interactive:Texas'HomelessPopulationDeclines.TheTexas
Tribune,LastModifiedNovember27,2013.
https://www.texastribune.org/2013/11/27
/texashomelesspopulationdeclines/.
25
BrazosValleyCoalitionfortheHomeless.2015.PointinTimeResultsin2015.
http://www.bvch.org/documents/PITSummary2015.pdf.
26
BrazosValleyconsistsofsevencounties:Brazos,Burleson,Grimes,Leon,Madison,Robertson,andWashington
BrazosValleyCouncilofGovernments.2015."WelcometoBVCOG."AccessedNovember12.
http://www.bvcog.org/.
27
BrazosValleyCoalitionfortheHomeless.2015.
28
UnitedStatesDepartmentofHousingandUrbanDevelopment.2014.The2014AnnualHomelessAssessment
Report(AHAR)toCongress.AccessedOctober13.
https://www.hudexchange.info/resources/documents/
2014AHARPart1.pdf.
10
families.29 More than 23 percentofthehomelessarechildrenunder18yearsofageandlessthan

9 percent of homeless people are veterans.30 In a survey of 25 cities in the United States the
reasonsofhomelessnessvaried.Amongfamilies,thehighestreportedcauseofhomelessnesswas
lack of affordable housing, followed by poverty, unemployment, lowpaying jobs,anddomestic
violence.31 Among single adults the highest reported cause of homelessness was substance
abuse, followed by lack of affordable housing, mental illness, poverty, and unemployment.32
Although homelessness is a difficult problem to solve, human service providershavedeveloped
severalstrategiestoalleviateit.Wediscussthesestrategiesinthesectionsthatfollow.
PreventingHomelessness
The preventionoriented framework is a new, promising approach to reducing homelessness.33
The prevention of homelessness is also referred to as shutting the front doortohomelessness.
Homelessness prevention
is a set of strategies that may help lowincome households stabilize
their current housing or help them move into new housing without first entering a shelter or
experiencinghomelessness.34Therearethreestagesofhomelessnessprevention:35
Primary Prevention: prevents new cases of homelessness by targeting householdsbefore
theyexperienceacrisisthatresultsintheirlossofhousing.
Secondary Prevention: identifies and addresses conditions at earlier stages of
homelessness aims to expedite exits fromhomelessnessbackintohousingforthosewho
haveenteredthefrontdoor.
Tertiary Prevention: slows the progression or mitigates the effects of homelessness once
ithasbeenestablished.
Homelessness prevention is a necessary component of any program for ending homelessness.
The more coordinatedandwelltargetedthepreventionprogramis,themorelikelyitisto reduce
the number of people who experience homelessness.36 Intervening beforefamilies havetoresort
to shelters is
easier and more costeffective than it is to wait until families are homeless and/or
seeking shelter to provide assistance. To keep a family or individual housedismucheasierthan
it is to find and pay foranewresidenceforapersonorfamilyonce theyhavebecomehomeless.
37
Intervening early by counteracting threats tostability,whilefamiliesarestillin theirhomes,is
29
UnitedStatesDepartmentofHousingandUrbanDevelopment.2014.
Ibid.
31
UnitedStatesConferenceofMayors.2008.HungerandHomelessnessSurveyAccessedSeptember8.
http://usmayors.org/pressreleases/documents/hungerhomelessnessreport_121208.pdf.
32
Ibid.
33
Metraux,Stephen,ThomasByrne,andDennisCulhane.2011.APreventionCenteredApproachto
HomelessnessAssistance:AParadigmShift?
HousingPolicyDebate
21(2):295315.
34
UnitedStatesInteragencyCouncilonHomelessness.2013.HomelessnessPrevention.AccessedOctober
http://usich.gov/usich_resources/solutions/explore/homelessness_prevention.
35
Metrauxetal.2011.
36
UnitedStatesInteragencyCouncilonHomelessness.2013.
37
BrazosCountyAssistancePrograms.2015.FinancialAssistancefromSalvationArmyinTexas.Accessed
October.http://www.needhelppayingbills.com/html/salvation_army_texas_financial.html.
30
11
better for the individuals and is less costly to society and the government.38 Programs that
provide utility assistance, shelters, permanent supportive housing, and vouchers are designed to
assistinpreventinghomelessness.
UtilitiesAssistance
To help andencourageindividualsthroughanemergencycrisis,somenonprofitsusethe primary
preventative tactic of offering utility assistancetohouseholdsstrugglingtomakepayments.This
service pays part or all of a households utility bills so residents can contribute more of their
income torent,thusavoidingevictionduetononpayment.Incomelevelisoftenthedetermining
factor for utility assistance program eligibility, but eligible participants are not always
guaranteed assistance. In a study of 6 states where utility assistance is provided, only 7 to 24
percent of eligible households received assistance, due to thelargenumber ofapplicantsandthe
limited block grantfundingavailable.39Thisisunfortunatesincelowerincomehouseholdsspend
higher proportions of their income on utilities than other households because low income
residences are often older and less energy efficient.40 One ofthepromisingpracticeshighlighted
from utility assistance research is the ability of nonprofits and utility companies to partner
together.41 Nodatahasbeenfoundonrecidivismratestothoseprovidedutilityassistance.
EmergencySheltersandTransitionalHousing
The number of people living in emergency sheltersandtransitionalhousingassistanceprograms
increased by three percent in 2013.42 In 2014, nearly six of ten individuals experiencing
homelessness were in emergency shelters or transitional housing programs. Emergency shelters
provide temporary shelter for homeless people in crisis situations, but do little to address
preventative measures.43 Individuals seek emergency shelters for temporary or nightly shelter
beds, but due to high demand many homeless people are turned away. On the other hand,
transitional housing uses secondary prevention tactics to address homelessness. Transitional
housing is temporary shelter relief that provides homeless people with a place to stay for up to
twentyfour months combined with supportive services to help individuals overcome barriers to
movingintoandretainingpermanenthousing.44
Shelters have long been communities shortterm solution to combatting homelessness.

Unfortunately, for families, the shelter environment can impede ones abilitytoparent.Lifeina
shelter can be accompanied by a lack of privacy and an obligation to follow someone elses
rules. Finding a balance between being both a parent and a client who has to submit to staff
38
BrazosCountyAssistancePrograms.2015.
Landey,Alana,andYuliyaRzad.2014.ApproachestoLowIncomeEnergyAssistanceFundinginSelected
States.AccessedNovember14.
http://aspe.hhs.gov/basicreport/approacheslowincomeenergy
assistancefundingselectedstates
.
40
Ibid.
41
Ibid.
42
UnitedStatesInteragencyCouncilonHomelessness.2013.HomelessnessPrevention.
43
Philipps.2012.
44
39
12
authority can be difficult.45 Moreover, theprospectoflosingonesbedforarrivinglateorfailing

to participate in support programming makes shelters an inherently unstable solution. Recent
research containsevidencethatotheroptionsmayhavethepotentialtogethomelessfamiliesand
individualsintopermanenthousing.
PermanentSupportiveHousing
One potential solution for endinghomelessness isPermanentSupportiveHousing(PSH).PSHis
decent, safe, affordable, communitybased housing that provides tenants with the rights of
tenancy and linkstovoluntaryandflexiblesupportsandservicesforpeoplewithdisabilitieswho
are experiencing homelessness.46 Although no fixed rubric exists for what a PSH living
situation shouldlooklike,optionsincludedapartmentsinmultiplelocationsacrossacity,aswell
as housing projects with multiple program tenants living in the same building. Tenants needing
PSHrequirelongtermassistanceandadditionalservicessuchasvocationaltrainingtoobtainthe
necessary skills to find and keep nonsubsidized housing after they leave PSH. Although these
skills are often a precursortosurvivingoutsideofPSH withoutsubsidizedhousing,participating
intheseservicesshouldnotbearequirementtoliveinapermanentsupportivehousingfacility. 47
Participants in a Massachusetts program had varied outcomes after living in a PSH for up to a
twoyear period. Of 678 individuals, 35 percent found permanent housing after PSH, and three
percent returned to homelessness.48 Providing PSH can be viewed asalessexpensiveoptionfor
local communities than perpetuating homelessness through the emergency shelter approach.
Whenaccountingforemergencyroomvisits,detoxstays,andprisoncosts,itisestimatedthatthe
Massachusetts program saved more than $9,000 annuallypereachtenanthoused.49Additionally,
when communities provide PSH, chronic homelessness begins to decline over time, which will
also reduce the costs taxpayers incur due to homelessness.50 Longterm cost benefits exist
however, upfront costs for facilities, ongoing maintenance, and trained professionalstaffshould
beassessedwhenconsideringPSHasanoption.
One of the key features PSH provides is access.51 Many homeless individuals must overcome
poor credit history, substance abuse, or criminal history. Living in PSHprovidesanopportunity
to demonstrate to future landlords that these tenants are able to live within the parameters of a
lease. Once a solid rental history is established through PSH, tenants can then move on to a
nonsubsidizedformofhousing.
45
Meschede,Tatjana,andSaraChaganti.2015.Homefornow:Amixedmethodsevaluationofashortterm
housingsupportprogramforhomelessfamilies.
EvaluationandProgramPlanning
52:8595.
46
UnitedStatesInteragencyCouncilonHomelessness.2013.PermanentSupportiveHousing.Accessed
September15,2015.http://usich.gov/usich_resources/solutions/explore/permanent_supportive_housing.
47
Ibid.
48
MassachusettsHousingandShelterAlliance.2013.PermanentSupportiveHousing:ASolutionDrivenModel.
Home&HealthyforGoodProgressReport
.AccessedSeptember12,2015.
49
Ibid.
50
Byrne,T.,J.Frago,A.E.Montgomery,E.Munley,andD.Culhane.2014.TheRelationshipbetweenCommunity
InvestmentinPermanentSupportiveHousingandChronicHomelessness.
SocialServiceReview
88:234263.
51
13
Vouchers
Another option forgettinghomelessindividualsintomorestablehousingis toprovidethemwith
vouchers. Rental subsidy vouchers provide an opportunityfortheindividualorfamilytoreceive
partial rental assistance for a qualifying housing option.52 This takes the burden of building,
buying, and maintaining properties off of taxpayers. Under this option, a percentageofmonthly
rent is subsidized.Criteriaforhousingaresetagainstfairmarketrentinthatarea.53 Thisnotonly
preventsthetenantfromsigningupforsomethingtheycannotafford,butalsominimizesthecost
subsidized by taxpayers. A downside of this criterion is that the quality of housing found by
tenants varies, compared to some forms of PSH. Another downside is that the rental subsidy
alone does not cover any utility costs the tenants have. Like PSH, program participants have
services available to them that provide job training and educationalresources.Attheconclusion
of a twoyear trial voucherprogram:25.5percentofthosereceivingvouchershadtransitionedto
housing without subsidy, 21.8 percent continued with subsidized housing, and 9.1 percent
returned to a shelter. 54 The percentage of BryanCollege Station residents moving from
subsidized to nonsubsidized housing isunknownatthistime,butwillbeinvestigatedduringthe
research portion of the project. Voucher options for BryanCollege Station residents includethe
Housing Choice Voucher ProgramofferedthroughtheBrazosValleyCouncilofGovernments. 55
This programpaysaportionofrent directlytothelandlord,withprogramparticipantspaying the
remainder. Participant income cannot exceed 50 percent of the average median income for the
county.56 Eligible income rates in Brazos County would be below: $21,350 for one person,
$24,440fortwopeople,and$30,450forafamilyoffour.57
Hunger
Food security is defined as access by all people at all times to enough food for an active,
healthy life. 58 The estimated food insecurity rate in Brazos County was 22.7 percent in 2013. 59
In the same year it was found that 10.7 percent of Brazos County residents utilized the
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).60 In addition, nearly 57 percent of kids in
BrazosCountyareeligibleforfreelunchesundertheNationalSchoolLunchProgram.61
52
Meschedeetal.2015.
Ibid.
54
Ibid.
55
BrazosValleyCouncilofGovernments.2015.HousingChoiceVoucherProgram.AccessedNovember8,2015.
http://www.bvcog.org/programs/housingchoicevoucherprogram/
.
56
Ibid.
57
BrazosValleyCouncilofGovernments.2015.BVCOGHousingChoiceVoucherProgramFY2015Income
Limits.AccessedNovember8,2015.
http://www.bvcog.org/wpcontent/uploads/2015/04/FY2015
IncomeLimitsEffectiveMarch6th2015.pdf.
58
UnitedStatesDepartmentofAgriculture.2015.FoodSecurityintheU.S.LastModifiedSeptember8,2015.
http://www.ers.usda.gov/topics/foodnutritionassistance/foodsecurityintheus.aspx.
59
FeedingAmerica.2015.MaptheMealGap2015:OverallFoodInsecurityinTexasbyCountyin2013.
http://www.feedingamerica.org/hungerinamerica/ourresearch/mapthemealgap/
2013/TX_AllCounties_CDs_MMG_2013.pdf.
60
CommunitySurvey.
61
Services,UnitedStatesDepartmentofHealthandHuman.2015.Freeschoolluncheligibility(percent).
Accessed2015.
http://www.healthindicators.gov/Indicators/Freeschoolluncheligibility
percent_10005/Profile/ClassicData.
53
14

In 2012, more than 17 million American households were faced with food insecurity.62 The
system through which these individuals and families access additional food is comprisedoftwo
parallel strands: public assistance in the form of federallyfunded programs, and private
assistanceintheformoffoodbanks,foodpantries,andsoupkitchens.63
In the public assistance strand,the SupplementalNutritionAssistanceProgram(SNAP,formerly

the Food Stamp Program), provides eligible recipients with a free monthly allotment of credits
that can be exchanged for food.64TheEmergencyFoodAssistanceProgram(TEFAP)allowsthe
federal government to donate excess commodities to states to be distributed through the private
food assistance system to those in need.65 The private food assistance network is a loose
collection of entities operated primarily by nonprofits and churches. Food banks obtain food at
low ornocostthroughTEFAP,throughcorporatedonationsof surplusfood,andfromindividual
contributions. Food pantries and soup kitchens then gather food from food banks, supplementit
with any direct donations they have received, and provide it as a collection of groceries (food
pantries)orprepareitasameal(soupkitchens).66
A number of issues limit the effectiveness ofthecurrentfoodassistancesystem.First,eligibility

requirements can prevent some individuals who are truly in need fromaccessingadequatefood.
SNAP eligibility is relative to the federal poverty line, an outdated and somewhat arbitrary
measure that does not encompass the full range of financial need.67 Consequently,36percentof
people who utilize a pantry in the national Feeding America network report that they do not
qualify for SNAP, often becausetheirincomeisdeemedtoohigh.68Foodpantriesvarywidelyin
their requirements, but many condition food assistance on completion of an application for
SNAP.69 Additionally, some pantries are intended torespondprimarilytotemporary,emergency
needs, so they refer clients to other agencies if they have come to the pantry for assistance
multiple times. Thus, people whose incomes do not align with the federal poverty measure or
whoexperiencechronicfoodinsecurityaresometimesleftwithfewoptions.
Even those receiving public or private food assistance find that it is often inadequate for their
nutritional needs. Nearly 55 percent of Feeding Americas clients currently receive SNAP
benefits but report that those benefits do not provide enough food to last the month.70
62
Weinfeld,N.,G.Mills,C.Borger,M.Gearing,T.Macaluso,J.Montaquila,andS.Zedlewski.2014.Hungerin
America2014:NationalReportPreparedforFeedingAmerica.FeedingAmerica.
63
Daponte,BethOsborneandShannonBade.2006.HowthePrivateFoodAssistanceNetworkEvolved:
InteractionsbetweenPublicandPrivateResponsestoHunger.
NonprofitandVoluntarySectorQuarterly
35(4):
668690.
64
Weinfieldetal.2014.
65
DaponteandBade.2006.
66
Berner,Maureen,TrinaOzer,andSharonPaynter.2008.APortraitofHunger,theSocialSafetyNet,andthe
WorkingPoor.
ThePolicyStudiesJournal36(3):
403420.
67
DaponteandBade2006.
68
Weinfieldetal.2014.
69
Paynter,Sharon,MaureenBerner,andEmilyAnderson.2011.WhenEventheDollarValueMealCostsToo
Much:FoodInsecurityandLongTermDependenceonFoodPantryAssistance.
PublicAdministration
Quarterly(Spring):
2658.
70
Weinfieldetal.2014.
15
Researchers studying private pantries have found that often, their inventories include products
that are pasttheirexpiration dates,physicallydamaged,unalignedwithclients nutritionalneeds,
or simply undesirable. Moreover, due to increased demand, the portion of the inventory that is
edible must be divided among a large numbers of clients, making it even more difficult for
individualstosecureenoughfood.71
An imbalance of power allows this flawed food assistance system to persist. The federal
government initially developed public food programs to provide economic support for farmers,
and agricultural interests continue to influence these programs today.72 In the private sector,
donating surplus food allows corporations to dispose of unwanted inventory while promoting
their brand and charitable reputation, as well as receiving a sizeable tax deduction.73 Because
Good Samaritan laws protect these corporations fromliabilityforunhealthyorunsafefood,they
donate freely and protectfoodassistanceprogramsastheycurrentlystand.74Meanwhile,citizens
who suffer from food insecurity not only are hesitant to bite the hand that feeds themforfear
of losing access to essential food in whatever form it takes, but due to their financial
circumstances they lack thepowertovoicetheircriticismoftheseprogramsand changethefood
assistancesystemforthebetter.75
Although the foregoing is a bleakpictureofthefoodassistancelandscape,therearenevertheless

a number of strategies operators of local food pantries can use to strengthen their clients food
security. A key strategy is to stock products aligned with theirclientsspecificneedsratherthan
simply accepting whatever donations are most easily obtained. The foodinsecure population is
quite diverse. Some clients need food for infants and toddlers, while others have growing
teenagers to feed some clients are trying to abide byreligiousfoodrestrictions,andothershave
strong preferences rooted in their ethnic heritage many need not only food, but common
household items suchassoap,toiletpaper,andtoothpaste.76Assessingclientneedsandadjusting
inventory accordingly helps ensure that people experiencing food insecuritycanmeettheirmost
essential nutritional and health needs.Anotherstrategyistopartnerwithotherorganizationsthat
alreadyservefoodinsecuregroupsandlocatefoodpantriesonsite.
The Immigrant Health and Cancer Disparities Service of New York successfully implemented
this technique by establishing pantries at five hospitals that primarily served lowincome,
immigrant cancer patients and stocking them with nutritionallybalanced products that would
combat malnutrition over the course of cancer treatment.77 In Delaware, state social service
71
Tarasuk,ValerieandJoanM.Eakin.2005.FoodAssistancethroughSurplusFood:Insightsfroman
EthnographicStudyofFoodBankWork.
AgricultureandHumanValues22:
177186.
72
DaponteandBlade2006,670.
73
Ibid.,682.
74
Tarasuk2005,184.
75
TarasukandEakin.2005.
76
Fiese,BarbaraH.,BrendaD.Hoester,andElaineWaxman.2014.BalancingHouseholdNeeds:TheNonFood
NeedsofFoodPantryClientsandTheirImplicationsforProgramPlanning.
JournalofFamilyand
EconomicIssues
35:423431.
77
Gany,F.,T.Lee,R.Loeb,J.Ramirez,A.Moran,M.lCrist,T.McNish,andJ.Leng.2014.UseofHospitalBased
FoodPantriesAmongLowIncomeUrbanCancerPatients.
JournalofCommunityHealth
:18.doi:
10.1007/s1090001500487.
16
centers partner with a large food bank to maintain small pantries so they can provide clients
applyingforfederalfoodassistancewithanimmediatesupplyoffoodandhouseholditemswhile
they wait for their application to be processed.78 Still more communities areexperimentingwith
other strategies for combatting food insecurity, from providing supplemental foodtoschoolage
children at the end of each month when family finances are especially tight79 to supplementing
pantry services with a comprehensive client needs assessment and monthly motivational
interviewing.80
In short, food pantry operators who have a clear understanding of their clients needs and are
familiar withthecommunitysresources arewellpositionedtoimprovedietqualityandalleviate
foodinsecurityforlowincomeindividualsandfamilies.
Health
Physical and mental health is another area of great concern. Not only do people with chronic
illnesses suffer physically, but often they find it difficult to maintainemploymentandmustface
steep medical expenses. These challenges can, in turn, limit access to adequate housing, food,
andeducationalopportunities.
Several mental health trends in thestateofTexasarenoteworthy.First,ofthoseindividuals who

make less than $25,000, some 29.5 percent were considered to havementalhealththatwasnot
good for at least five days out of the previous month. This rate drops to 20 percent for those
making between $25,000 and $50,000, and 14.4 percent for those making more than $50,000.81
Large discrepancies also existamongdifferentracialgroups.AfricanAmericansinTexashavea
higher rate of poor mental health (24.6 percent) than Hispanics (20.8 percent) or Caucasians
(19.7 percent).82 According to the 2013 Regional Health Assessment conducted by the Texas
A&M Health Science Center, 19.2 percent of respondents in Brazos County said they had
experienced between one and five days of poor mental health and 12.1 percent of respondents
reported having poor mental health more than 10 days out of a month.83 The report also notes
the persistent lackofmental healthservicesavailableintheregionandthefactthattheratesof
poor mental health in Brazos County are higher than the averages for Texas as a whole.84
78
Wolfe,Robin,NancyCotunga,andCarolynK.Manning.2012.FoodClosetsinStateSocialServiceCenters:
OneStopShopping.
JournalofHungerandEnvironmentalNutrition
7:414425.
79
Behrman,C.,M.Benedetto,T.Derrig,B.Harsh,E.Marchione,L.Ross,andM.Vimont.2014.FoodInsecurity
andanUrbanAmericanElementarySchool:DevelopmentofaCommunityBasedResearchand
ServiceLearningPartnership.
Partnerships:AjournalofServiceLearningandCivicEngagement
5
(2):122136.
80
Martin,KatieS.,R.Wu,M.Wolff,A.G.Colantonio,andJ.Grady.2013.ANovelFoodPantry
Program:FoodSecurity,SelfSufficiency,andDietQualityOutcomes.
AmericanJournalofPreventive
Medicine
45(5):569575.
81
TexasBehavioralRiskFactorSurveillanceSystem.2014.HealthStatusofTexasReport2014DataSupplement.
editedbyTexasDepartmentofStateHealthServices.
82
Ibid.
83
TexasA&MHealthScienceCenter.2013.RHP17RegionalHealthAssessment2013,SupplementalReport:
BrazosCounty.CenterforCommunityHealthDevelopment.
84
TexasA&MHealthScienceCenter.2013.
17
Furthermore, 16.1 percent of Brazos County residents are without health insurance, which
hamperstheirabilitytogainaccesstothelimitedmentalhealthservicesavailable.85
To tackle this issue, a numberofhumanservicenonprofitsattempttoaddressindividualshealth

in some way. Nonprofit health programming may be understood as comprising a threetiered
pyramid. The bottom level, Informational Services, involves connecting clients with knowledge
and assistance and is the least resourceintensive type of programming. The middle level,
Support Services, is comprised of programs that meet the secondary needs of people in poor
health. The top level, Treatment and Clinical Care Services, represents the direct treatment of
one or more health conditions and requires medical expertise and large expenditures of
resources.86 We will briefly overview each level of service in the sections below, making
connectionstotheuniqueroleoffaithbasedorganizationswhenpossible.
InformationalServices
Nonprofit organizations can support community health without ever treating a single patient by
providing information to their clients. This may take the form of a onetime referral to a single
agency, or it could involve matching aclienttoanumberofotherprogramsandprofessionalsas
needed. An organization may go one step further by teaching clients how to navigate the
oftencomplex human services system by assistance with the completion of applications for aid
or explaining the process a state agency uses to provide its services. Information is a key
component of prevention, as well. NPOs can design public awareness campaigns to discourage
unhealthy practices and promote healthy ones, or they might offer inhome, oneonone
consultation to vulnerable populations such as firsttime mothers. Whatever form the service
takes, NPO managersmustensurethattheinformationtheyofferiscontinuallyupdatedsothatit
remainscurrentwiththeproviderlandscapeandresearchbase.87
FBOs, particularly churches and other local places of worship, are wellsuited to provide a
number of informational health services. They often are trusted in the community and are in
frequent contact with significant portionsofthelocalpopulationduetotheirregularlyscheduled
worship services. Nearly 50 percent of the congregational leaders who responded to a recent
national survey indicated that their organizations offered health or wellnessrelated pamphlets
andleafletstomembersothersreportedprovidinghealthinformationviabulletinboards,weekly
handouts, or onsite resource libraries. These services were particularly popular among smaller,
rural groups that did not have the volunteer base to launch more intensive health services.
Groups with a larger volunteer base and more resources often offered health classes, fairs, and
group counseling. Over 40 percent of respondents offered health screenings as part of their
ministries, helping community members to learn more about their current health status and
recognize when they needed professional help.88 Yet another informational strategy some
85
CommunitySurvey.
86
DeKraai,MarkB.,DeniseJ.Bulling,NancyC.Shank,andAlanJ.Tomkins.2011.FaithBasedOrganizationsin
aSystemofBehavioralHealthCare.
JournalofPsychologyandTheology
39(3):255267.
87
DeKraaietal.2011.
88
Bopp,Melissa,andElizabethA.Fallon.2013.HealthandWellnessProgramminginFaithBasedOrganizations:
ADescriptionofaNationwideSample.
HealthPromotionPractice
14(1):122131.
18
congregations use is to offer the services of a parish nurse, that is, a registered professional
nurse under the supervision of a particular church who offers emotional and spiritual support,
counseling, and health educationtomembersofthecongregationand,insomecases,thebroader
community as well. These nurses serve as a valuable link between the community, spiritual
leaders,andtheformalhealthcaresystem.89
SupportServices
The support services category is a broad one because it includes all of the daily necessities
people may have difficulty accessing due to health problems. The other sections of this review
address several key support services related to housing, nutrition, and education other services
NPOs can provide include transportation aid, assistance with independent living skills, and
comprehensive, wraparound case management. NPO leaders who seek to positively impact
community health but do not have the resources to provide clinical care can findfertileground
for service here because each of these support services is intimately related to health. For
example, people who have a nutritious diet often experienceimproved health,peoplewhohave
access to reliable transportation are more likely to obtain regular medicalcare,andsoon.NPOs
currently offering support services can strengthen their impact on community health by
understanding the relationship between their work and clients overall physical and mental
wellbeingratherthanviewingclientsproblemsasindividual,compartmentalizedissues. 90
ClinicalCareServices
Clinical care can take the form of outpatient, inpatient, or residential treatment, as wellascrisis
intervention for either physical or mentalillnesses.91Becauseinpatientorresidentialtreatmentis
most likely beyond the scope of the Salvation Armysmission,wefocusourreviewononetype
ofoutpatientclinicknownasacommunityhealthcenter.
Community health centers (CHCs) are private nonprofit organizations that receive public
funding and provide comprehensive primary health services toresidentsofadefinedgeographic
area that is medically underserved.92 In recent years they have grown in popularity and
effectiveness. Health services offered to lowincome individuals, especially those without
insurance, at CHCs are usually just as effective atachievingdesiredhealthoutcomes asservices
offered at hospitals. For instance, researchers examining a CHC for HIVpositive individuals
found that there was nodifferencebetweenthetreatmentpatientsreceivedatahospitalandwhat
they received at the community clinic.93 This finding has also held for CHCs focusing on
lowincome patients over the age of 50.94 This is an especially important discovery, because
89
Anderson,CarolM.2004.TheDeliveryofHealthCareinFaithBasedOrganizations:ParishNursesas
PromotersofHealth.
HealthCommunication
16(1):117128.
90
DeKraaietal.2011.
91
Ibid.
92
Schranz,AsherJ.,KathleenA.Brady,FlorenceMomplaisir,JoshuaP.Metlay,AlisaStephens,andBalighR.
Yehia.2015.ComparisonofHIVOutcomesforPatientsLinkedatHospitalVersusCommunityBased
Clinics.
AIDSPatientCareandSTDs
29(3):117125.
93
Ibid.
94
O'Malley,AnnS.,andJeanneMandelblatt.2003.DeliveryofPreventiveServicesforLowincomePersonsover
Age50:AComparisonofCommunityHealthClinicstoPrivateDoctors'Offices.
JournalofCommunity
Health
28(3):185197.
19
people between the ages of 50 and 64 are increasingly likely todevelophealthproblemsbutare

notyeteligibleforMedicare.
Access to resources is key to the success of a CHC. For example, the HIV clinics mentioned
above were effective because they adhered to researchbased treatment protocols, utilized
performance measurement to monitor their effectiveness, and employed trained pharmacists
onsite. Staff werealso wellqualifiedtoeducatepatientsonproperselfcaresotheirhealthgains
could be sustained over time.95 Additionally, any clinic, regardless of the health issue it
addresses, mustabidebyfederal andstateregulationsandemploylicensed professionals.96Allof
these practices require a significant investment in facilities, equipment, and staff. Often, CHCs
can apply for stateandfederalgrantstosupporttheirwork.97Inothercases,itmaybe possibleto
develop partnerships in which doctors from local hospitals, clinics, or medical schools
periodicallyvolunteerinthecommunityclinic.Thesearrangementscanbemutuallybeneficialin
that they improve the quality of the clinicsservices,strengthenthereputationofthevolunteers
organizationinthecommunity,andprovidevaluableexperiencetoyoungpractitioners.98
It is important forCHCoperatorstoensurethe patientsingreatestneedhaveaccesstotheclinic.

A generous operator may wish toofferitsservicestoallcomers,butthismayresultinafloodof
patients who have other options and simply wish not to use them, which consumes valuable
resources requiredbytheneediestpatients.Thus,developmentofapolicy that restrictsaccesson
the basis of need and to target outreach efforts to the specific population the CHC serves is
appropriate.
Education and Youth Development

Education
The educational landscape of Brazos County is diverse. It is home to Texas A&M University,
one of the premier institutions of higher learning in the state of Texas, as well as a campus of
Blinn Community College. In the Spring 2015 semester, more than 52,000 students attended
Texas A&M, and the Blinn campus in Bryan had an enrollment of more than12,000students.99
Although thousands of college students live in Brazos County on a parttime basis, the 2013
American Community Survey exposes a concerning educational trend amongpermanentBrazos
County residents. Researchers found that 35.9 percent of Brazos County residents over the age
25 have only a high school diploma or GED equivalent or less, and an additional 20.2 percent
have attended college at some point but do not have a postsecondary degree of any type.100
95
Schranzetal.2015.
DeKraaietal.2011.
97
Schranzetal.2015.
98
Dobson,Sarah,StephaneVoyer,MariaHubinette,andGlennRegehr.2015.FromtheClinictotheCommunity.
AcademicMedicine
90(2):214220Berlinger,Nancy,MichaelK.Gusmano,andEvaTurbiner.2014.
Revisiting'TheClinic':EthicalandPolicyChallengesintheUSCommunityHealthCenters.
HEPL
HealthEconomics,PolicyandLaw
9(4):425434.
99
TexasA&MUniversity.2015.EnrollmentProfileSpring2015.
http://dars.tamu.edu/dars/files/6b/6b5e6b28
aa5740f1b91b22ecd2b5e00d.pdf.BlinnCollege.2015.BlinnannounceditslargestSpringclassin
Collegehistory. https://www.blinn.edu/news/2015/february/largest_spring_class_in_history.html.
100
UnitedStatesCensusBureau.2015.SelectedSocialCharacteristicsintheUnitedStates.
http://factfinder.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?src=bkmk.
96
20
Having said this, the countys 38.8 percent of citizens who have at least a bachelors degree
surpasses the proportion of all Texans who can say the same (26.7 percent). There are two
distinct situations in Bryan and College Station that underlie this statistic. More than56percent
of College Station residents have at least a bachelors degree, while just under 26 percent of
102
Bryan residents do.101 , These statistics are important because the lower a person's education
levelis,themorelikelyheorsheistobelivinginpoverty.103
Various researchers have determined that children who live in poverty have poorer educational
104
outcomes than those who do not this goes on to affect them adversely later in life. In one
study, it was determined that children under five who lived in poverty ultimately less school,
105
earned less money, and were more likely to have poor health than those that did not. Several
metrics, including reading comprehension, vocabulary, and proficiency in letter recognition and
numbers and shapes, indicate that children in poverty perform considerably worse than those
106
whoarenot.
Poor educational outcomes for children who live in poverty appears to extend beyond early
childhood. Fourth and eighth graders who were eligible for free or reduced price lunches had
107
lower levels of reading achievement than did ineligible students. In addition, researchers
indicate that scores on the SAT were lower among students that had lived in povertythanthose
108
that had not. Another study shows that children who did not perform well inthirdgradewere
109
more likely to drop out of high school later on. Furthermore, minority children were more
110
likely to struggle in this way, which can help explain their higher rates of poverty as adults.
The premise of the studys title,
Double Jeopardy, is based on the finding that children who
have lived in poverty and are not reading proficiently in the third grade are about three times
more likelytodropoutorfailtograduatethanthosewhohaveneverbeen poor.Consequently,
the childreninpoorfamiliesareindoublejeopardy:theyaremorelikelytohavelowreadingtest
111
scoresand,atanyreadingskilllevel,theyarelesslikelytograduatefromhighschool.
With Brazos County demographics constantly changing and a poverty level currently estimated
at 29.51 percent, youth development initiatives will prove to be critical in contributing to the
educational outcomes, and therefore health and other outcomes discussed previously, for future
112
generations.
101
UnitedStatesCensusBureau.2015.CollegeStation(city),Texas.
UnitedStatesCensusBureau.2015.Bryan(city),Texas.
103
Gabe,Thomas.2015.PovertyintheUnitedStates:2013.Washington,DC:CongressionalResearchService.
104
Ibid.
105
Coley,Richard,andBruceBaker.2013.PovertyandEducation:FindingtheWayForward.TheETSCenterfor
ResearchonHumanCapitalandEducation.
106
ColeyandBaker.2013
107
Ibid.
108
Ibid.,10.
109
Hernandez,DonaldJ.2011.DoubleJeopardy:HowThirdGradeReadingSkillsandPovertyInfluenceHigh
SchoolGraduation.TheAnnieE.CaseyFoundation.
110
Ibid.,9.
111
Ibid.,7.
112
Dashboard,Civic.2014.PercentLivinginPovertyinBrazosCounty,TX.AccessedOctober12,2015.
http://www.civicdashboards.com/county/brazoscountytx05000US48041/percent_living_in_poverty.
102
21
YouthDevelopment
The goals of youth development programs can be summarized as Five Cs: Competence,
113
Confidence, Connection, Character, andCaring. Competenceistheviewanadolescenthasof
his or herinterpersonalskills,cognitiveabilities,academicabilities,andvocationalperformance.
Confidence is an individuals selfworth. Connection is the bond youth forge with parents,
school faculty and staff, classmates, and community members. Character is the morality
adolescents possess, and Caring is the empathy and sympathy youth have for other members of
society. Young people who develop well in all these areas can be thought of as thriving. It is
important to note however, that how change is measured in each domain should adjust
according to the changes adolescents go throughwhenmovingfromenvironmentalcontexts and
adolescentstages(early,middle,andlatestages).114
The first step in meeting the educational and developmental needs of all youth is collaboration
between government and local organizations in forming and organizing dropout prevention
115
programs and encouragement/preparation programs. Researchers have proven that any effort
to bridgetheliteracygaprequireskeycollaborationbetweenschools,nonprofits,andcommunity
foundations.116 NPOs can supportschoolsindevelopingliteracy by offeringafterschooltutoring
in reading, math, and science. The beneficial effects of tutoring can carry over into other
academic areas as well.117 Because mentors play a large role in the development ofadolescents,
researchers have shown that university student tutors can have a positive effect on lowincome
youth.118 Futurepovertycanbereducedifeducationisemphasizedatayoungage.
Collaboration and Collective Impact

Collaboration
With the realization that individual organizations cannot provide longterm solutions, there has
been a move in the publicsectorto workincollaborativeefforts,alsoknownaspartnershipsand
coordinating councils.119 As stated earlier, Brazos Countys social problems do not have
onesizefitsall solutions because they are symptoms of other problems. Thus, there are
interdependencies betweentheorganizationstacklingtheseissueswheretheactionstakenbyone
organizationcanhaveadirecteffectontheactionstakenbyanother.120
113
Bowers,E.,Y.Li,M.Kiely,A.Brittian,J.Lerner,andR.Lerner.2010.TheFiveCsofPositiveYouth
Development:alongitudinalanalysisofconfirmatoryfactorstructureandmeasurementinvariance.
JournalofYouth&Adolescence
39(7):720735.
114
Bowers,etal.2010.
115
Bowers,etal.2010.
116
Gonzalez,R.M.2015.Don'tTrytoBridgeLiteracyGapAlone.
PhiDeltaKappan
96(6):5558.
117
Zuelke,DennisC.,andJ.GordonNelson.2011.TheEffectofaCommunityAgency'sAfterSchoolTutoring
ProgramonReadingandMathGPAgainsforAtRiskTutoredStudents.
Education
121(4):800.
118
Grineski,Steve.2003.AUniversityandCommunityBasedPartnership:AfterSchoolMentoringfor
LowIncomeYouth.
TheSchoolCommunityJournal
13(1):101114.
119
Nowell,Branda,andPennieFosterFishman.2010.ExaminingMultiSectorCommunityCollaborativesas
VehiclesforBuildingOrganizationalCapacity.
AmericanJournalofCommunityPsychologists
48:193207.
120
NowellandFosterFishman.2010.
22
Collaborative efforts ideally build on the strengths of various community organizations. While
collaborating, participants are not only benefiting from the strengths offered by their partners,
but are also building their own capacity to tackle social issues. Because the process of change
takes time, collaboration requires participating organizations and other members to make a
longterm commitment to the initiative. Without this commitment, the collaborative effort isset
to fail. Collaborative initiatives alsoprovideincreasedaccesstoinformation,suchas community
data, which allows organizations to see which services being provided by participating groups
are achieving positive results. Ultimately, collaboration should increase community capacity,
defined as the increase in the ability of community members and institutions to effectively
resolve community problems.121 Although collaboration is designed to build a mutual
partnership, there is still much emphasis on the goals of individual organizations themselves.
These initiatives often lead to the creation of additional programs, when in reality there already
may be a sufficient number of programs offering services that unfortunately are not leading to
longterm,sustainablerelief.
CollectiveImpact
In 2011, John Kania and Mark Kramer introduced the idea of collective impact. They defined
this effort asthecommitment ofagroupofimportantactorsfromdifferentsectorstoacommon
agenda for solving a specific social problem.122 At first, collective impact may seem strikingly
similar to collaborative initiatives. In reality, though, they are fundamentally different. In
collaboration initiatives we see groups and organizations working together to create new
programs. In contrast, collective impact efforts bring together community members,leadersand
organizations to work toward continually improving outcomes over time.123 Collaboration
initiativesusedatatoshowthatprogramsandservicesareworkingcollectiveimpactusesdata
to corporately improve results of specific social problem.124 The final and greatest difference
between collaboration and collective impact is that in collaborative initiatives, groups are only
collaborating during an allotted amount of time given to meetings and in completing tasks. In
collective impact efforts, leaders, community members, and organizations who are truly
committed to these social issues are actively and continually coordinating with one another
through a common agenda to find sustainable solutions. Collective impact becomes part of the
actorseverydaylife.125
Five conditions are crucial to the success of a collective impact initiative: a common agenda,
shared measurement systems, mutually reinforcing activities, continuous communication, and
backbonesupportorganizations. 126
121
Ibid.
Kania,John,andMarkKramer.2011.CollectiveImpact.
StanfordSocialInnovationReview
Winter
2011:3641.
123
Edmondson,Jeff.2012.TheDifferencebetweenCollaborationandCollectiveImpact.AccessedOctober10,
2015.
http://www.strivetogether.org/blog/2012/11/thedifferencebetweencollaboration
andcollectiveimpact/.
124
Preskill,Hallie,MarcieParkhurst,andJenniferSplanskyJuster.2014.GuidetoEvaluatingCollectiveImpact:
LearningandEvaluationintheCollectiveImpactContext.CollectiveImpactForum.
125
Edmondson.2012.
126
Kania,John,andMarkKramer.2013.EmbracingEmergence:HowCollectiveImpactAddressesComplexity.
:116.
122
23

To have a common agenda, participants must have a shared vision and goal. There should be a
mutual understanding of the problem under consideration, and there must be mutual agreement
about what actions participants will take to move toward a solution. This, however, does not
meanthatthesolutionsthemselvesarebeingcreated.Atthisearlystageoftheeffort,participants
areagreeingtogoalsthatultimatelywilladdressthesocialproblem.127
For participants to come to an agreement on shared measurements means there is consensus on

how results will be evaluated. Marcie Parkhurst and HalliePreskilldividetheprocessoffinding
shared measurements as the ask what, ask why, and ask often phases. In the ask what
phase,participantsarelooking attheinitiativescontext,theinitiativeitself,thesystemsthatthe
initiativetargets,andtheinitiativesultimateoutcomes.128 Inthefirstthreeyearsoftheinitiative
this may move slowly, butastheinitiativematuresmeaningfulandmeasurableoutcomeswillbe
achieved. From the evaluation results, partners should then ask why certain change is
occurring. Asking oftenwill thenallowthemeasurementandevaluationmethodstobeusedas
a learning tool for partners, laying the foundation for organic, continuous improvement.129
Evaluationmethodsusedincollective impactinitiativesvarybylocation becauseeverysituation
and environment differs. In other words, a collective impact initiativeinBrazosCountywillnot
necessarylooklikeacollectiveimpactinitiativeinWaco.
In collective impact, stakeholders come from a variety of different areas of expertise. To have
mutually reinforcing activities means these stakeholders will work together by encouraging one
another to undertake the specific setofactivitiesatwhichitexcelsinawaythatsupportsandis
coordinated with the actions of others.130 Each organization plays to its own strengths and is
able to continue with its own programs and activities, but must always keep the common
goals/agenda in view. Participants must also continue to share the results obtained from the
sharedmeasurementsthathavebeenagreedupon.
As in every group activity, continuous communication is a lifeline in collective impact efforts.

Communication is crucial because it helps build trust between organizations, community
members, and leaders who may have never worked together before. This communication will
allow for each participant to learn more about the strengths each one has to offer and whyeach
participant is motivated to work towards solving the social problem via the collective impact
context. Through meetings or other forms ofcommunications,partnerswillalsobeabletocome
to an agreement on the vocabulary that will be used throughout the effort. This will provetobe
criticalespeciallywhentryingtocometoaconsensusonacommonmeasurementsystem.
127
Kania.2013.
Parkhurst,Marcie,andHalliePreskill.2014.LearninginAction:EvaluatingCollectiveImpact.
StanfordSocial
InnovationReview
Fall2014:1719.
129
ParkhurstandPreskill.2014.
130
Kania,John,andMarkKramer.2011.CollectiveImpact.
Winter2011:3641.
128
24
Finally, backbone support organizations play a vital role in every collective impact initiative.
Without these organizations, the collective impact initiative will fail in any environment.131
Backbone organizations support and facilitate collective impact by guiding the vision and
strategy, supporting aligned activities, establishing shared measurement practices, building
public will, advancing policy, and mobilizing funding. In reality, they plan, manage, and
support the initiative through every stage for there to beasmoothjourney.Insimpleterms, the
three roles of the backbone organization are that of the project manager, data manager, and
facilitator.132 Examples of backbone organization are Strive133 and, in some cases, the United
Way.
Strategic Planning for New Program Adoption

Creating a new human services program in any of the four areas discussed in this literature
review is a major change that should not be undertaken lightly. NPO leaders who choose their
new program and client base wisely are more likely to seetheirorganizationincreaseitspublic
value, sometimes quite dramatically. On the other hand,aprogramforwhichthereislittleclient
need, community support, or funding can drain an organizations resources andsocialcapital.134
Leaders of faithbased organizations such as the BCSSA have the additional responsibility of
ensuring that any new initiatives they undertake are aligned with the organizations religious
identityanddonotforcethecompromiseofkeyvalues.135
Certain organizational attributes can mitigate the risk associated with a new program.
Organizations that offer multiple services may be better equipped to take on another program
because they already are experienced in managing many initiatives at once. Relatively large,
wellfinanced organizations tend to be more successful in establishing new programs because
program adoption requires a significant investment of resources in market research, program
development, staff training, marketing, and sometimes additional staff. These are simply
generalizations, however smaller, singleprogram entities have also successfully added
programs inthepast.Ontheotherhand,programadoptionisalmostguaranteednottosucceed in
organizations whose personnel are resistant to change due to their commitment to current
missionandprogramming.136
The principlesofnewproductdevelopment(NPD)areapotentiallyhelpful, albeitunderstudied,

resource for NPOs contemplating any additional programs. Several studies in the forprofit
sector have established the efficacy of six practices for the development of new products and
131
Turner,Shiloh,KathyMerchant,JohnKania,andEllenMartin.2012.UnderstandingtheValueofBackbone
OrganizationsinCollectiveImpact.
July20121:18.
132
Phillips,David,andJenniferSplanskyJuster.2014.CommittingtoCollectiveImpact:FromVisionto
Implementation.
CommunityInvestments
26(1):1117.
133
KaniaandKramer.2011.StriveistheoriginalcradletocareerinitiativeinCincinnatithatwas featuredinthe
firstcollectiveimpactarticleintheStanfordSocialInnovationReview.
134
Auer,JenniferClaire,EricC.Twombly,andCarolJ.DeVita.2011.SocialServiceAgenciesandProgram
Change:ImplicationsforTheoryandPolicy.
PublicPerformanceandManagementReview
34
(3):378396.
135
Bielefeld,WolfgangandWilliamSuhsCleveland.2013.DefiningFaithBasedOrganizationsandUnderstanding
ThemThroughResearch.
NonprofitandVoluntarySectorQuarterly42(3)
:442467.
136
Aueretal.2011.
25
services: 1) aligning new products with organizational strategy, 2) managing products as a

portfolio rather than as individual entities, 3) consistently using a formal NPD process, 4)
conducting market research to determine key needs andinterests,5) designatingchampionsto
shepherd the new productfromcreationtodelivery,and6)measuringtheproductsperformance
onthemarket.137
Very little research exists on the application of these practices to the nonprofitsector,butbased
on two investigations there is promise. First, Finley et al. guided a Canadian NPO through the
process of needsbased segmentation, which is grounded in one principle of NPD: market
research. Essentially, the leaders of this NPO identified the shared and unique needs of their
current and potential clients to identify clients motivations for accessing each service the
organization provided.Thisprocesshelpedthemmakeinformeddecisionsaboutwhichsegments
of their clientele they were best suited to serve. Marketers and public relations professionals
have practiced audience segmentation for decades, but this appears to have been a unique
application to the nonprofit sector.138 Second, Gruber and Mohr suggested that NPOs could
manage their resources more effectively if they viewed their programs and services as a
complete, interdependent portfolio in which changes to one affected thecostsand benefitsofall
the others. They proposed afourwaymodelthatclassifiedprogramsbythefinancialreturnsand
social value they produced (Table2).
Sustaining
programsproducepositivefinancialreturnsand
low social value.
Detrimental
programs produce negative financial returns andlowsocialvalue.
Worthwhile
programsproducenegativefinancialreturnsbuthighsocialvalue.Finally,
beneficial
programs produce positive financial returns and high social value. NPO leaders, the authors
argued, could use this model to identify
sustaining
and
beneficial
programs and use them to
subsidize
worthwhile
programs. They could also use the model to identify and prune
detrimental
programs.139 Although other researchers have not yet fully explored the appropriate
role of NPD practices in the nonprofit sector, these principles may provide a useful framework
forconsideringtheBCSSAsproposedCenterofHope.
137
Barczak,Gloria,KennethB.Kahn,andRobertaMoss.2006.AnExploratoryInvestigationofNPDPracticesin
NonprofitOrganizations.
TheJournalofProductInnovationandManagement
23:512527.
138
Finley,D.S.,G.Rogers,M.Napier,andJ.Wyatt.2011.Fromneedsbasedsegmentationto
programrealignment:TransformationofYWCAofCalgary.
AdministrationinSocialWork35:
299323.
139
Gruber,RobertE.andMaryMohr.1982.Strategicmanagementformultiprogramnonprofitorganizations.
CaliforniaManagementReview24(3):
1522.
26
Table2.GruberandMohrs4WayProgramClassificationModel
Beneficial
(Bestofallpossibleworlds)
Basicstrategy:Cautiousexpansion
Useoffundsgeneratedbytheprogram:
Tradeoffplowbackorsubsidize
worthwhileprograms
Detrimental
(Noredeemingqualities)
Basicstrategy:Pruning
Useoffunds:Noneavailable
Worthwhile
(Satisfying,goodforsociety)
Basicstrategy:Carefulnurturing
Useoffunds:Noneavailable
Positive
Sustaining
(Necessaryevil?)
Basicstrategy:Maintenance
Useoffundsgeneratedbythe
program:Subsidizeworthwhile
programs
Financial
Returns
Negative
Low
Benefits/SocialValue
High
Source: Gruber, Robert E. and Mary Mohr. 1982. Strategic management for multiprogram nonprofit
organizations.
CaliforniaManagementReview24(3):
1522.
Research Methodology
Thefundamentalquestionguidingourresearchis:
HowcantheBryanCollegeStationSalvationArmybestleverageitsstrengthstosustainably
meetcommunityneeds?
From this question, and based on our research to date, wehaveidentifiedanumberofquestions

relevant to the Mission Planning Study: What is the current impact of the BCSSAs efforts to
alleviate homelessness, hunger, poor health, and low educational attainment in Brazos County?
How are other organizations in the area addressing these problems? Where are there gaps,
redundancies, and potential for collaboration? What programming changes hold the most
promise for the BCSSA as it continually seeks to improve its effectiveness in the community?
Answering these questions will require our team to engage in careful research.This sectionwill
explainthemethodsandresearchdesignwewillusetofindanswersfortheBCSSA.
In recent years, key stakeholder groups, particularly funders, have increasingly expected NPOs
to utilize researchbased practices in their management and operations, and to conduct research
themselves to determine whether or not they are effective. Since the quality of published
research varies widely, it is important for NPO leaders to be able to distinguish between valid
and invalid studies.140 Our team will take every possible measure to ensure that ourfindingsare
valid,reliable,andaccurate.
140
Buchanan,Phil.2013.AsNonprofitResearchProliferates,ItMustBeViewedWithHealthySkepticism
The
ChronicleofPhilanthropy
.AccessedOctober2015.
27
ChoosingDataSources
When collectingdata,ourteamwillusebothprimaryandsecondarysourcestoanalyzetheneeds
of particular areas and populations. Our research questions, budget, and available resources
influencedthewaywehavechosentobalanceprimaryandsecondarysources.141 Secondarydata,
such as the information generated by the U.S. Census Bureau and local reports such as the
Brazos County Health Needs Assessment, are beneficial to our teams research because they
provide large volumes of data covering long spans of time at low or nocosttous.Becausedata
collection is extremely timeintensive, it will be helpful to have so much information readily
available. The disadvantage, though, is that these secondary sources are not tailored to our
specific research questions, so wemust carefullyidentifywhichcomponentoftheinformationis
most relevanttoourwork.Theadvantageofusingprimarydataisthatresearcherswillbeableto
collect tailored information based on the specific purpose of our study.142 Withthisinmind,our
team chose to ground ourwork inthe secondarydataalreadyavailable,thencollectprimarydata
to answer only those questions that are not addressed by our secondary sources.
A greatdealof
this primary data will becollectedusingqualitativeresearchmethods,whichare describedinthe
followingsection.
ConductingQualitativeResearch
Qualitative research is any method that uses a small number of respondents who provide
information about their thoughts and ideas from which some conclusionscanbedrawn.143 This
is a particularly helpful approach in situations where it is important to understand individuals
perceptions, opinions, and experiences. Qualitative research is also a powerful way to not only
understand a community problem, but lay the groundwork for solving it. The many
conversations that form the qualitative data base can serve to help participants articulate their
thoughts about the problem, learn how others perceive it, and deepen their commitment to
working together toward a solution. Since the BCSSA seeks to better understand poverty in
Brazos County and to collaborate with key stakeholders in their work, our team hasdetermined
thatqualitativemethodsareappropriateforthisstudy.Ourprimarymethodswillbe:
Interviews.
Individual interviews are structured conversations with one respondent. We
will interview communitymemberswhowillbeselectedbasedonspecificcharacteristics
and attributes related to our study. This method is important because it allows for the
team to get more detailed information through an indepth, oneonone conversation. It
also allows participants to be more open than they might be in a less private setting.144
Interviews will be approximately one hour in length and will focus on the health,
housing, hunger, and education services providers offer within Brazos County. The
InstituteforWorkandHealth.2011.WhatResearchersMeanby...QualitativeResearch.
AtWork
(64):2.
InstituteforWork&Health.2008.WhatResearchersMeanby...PrimaryDataandSecondaryData.
AtWork
(54):18.
143
Polonsky,MichaelJ.,andDavidS.Waller.2015.DesigningandManagingaResearchProject:ABusiness
Student'sGuide.ThousandOaks,California:SAGEPublications,Inc.
144
Ibid.
141
142
28
interview session will provide us with detailed, unfiltered, uninterrupted insight into
communitymembersopinionsandperceptions.145
Surveys.
Surveys are one of the most important methods social scientists use to make
generalizations about a population. Our team will use surveys to collect data about
community members personal priorities and perceptions of the BCSSA. We will attend
to three primary concerns to ensure that the conclusions we draw from our survey are
valid.
First, we will use a mixed combination of sampling strategies to represent
populations of interest in our study. Although the ideal approach to understanding an
entire community'sperceptionsistosurveyarandomsampleoftheentirepopulation,our
limited time and role as students will not permit us to do so. Instead, we will survey
people to whom we have easier access, a strategy called conveniencesampling.When
we usethisstrategy,wewillbecarefulnottogeneralizeourfindingsbeyondthegroupof
people we surveyed. We also plan to ensure maximum variation in our sample by
administering surveys across a variety of locations.
Second, we willcarefullydesignour
questionstoensurethemostaccurateresponsespossible.Thisincludes:
Keeping the survey reasonably short so respondents do notbecomefatiguedand
leavethesurveyincomplete.
Ordering questions appropriately so thatearlierquestionsdonotbiasresponsesto
laterquestions.
Using clearlydefined terms and specific language to ensure the conceptwewant
tolearnaboutistheconceptrespondentshaveinmindwhentheyanswer.
Using neutral language that does not pressure respondents to give one specific
answeroveranother.
Finally, we will summarize and analyze our survey data using appropriate quantitative
techniquesandbytakingcaretoaccountformissingresponsesandoutliers.146
OtherMethods
Our team will extend our research by observing Salvation ArmysitesinTylerandWacotogain
knowledge of organizational practices the BCSSA mightconsideradoptingtomeettheirclients
needs. We will also continue to seek local secondary sources related to our research questions,
including official documents and speeches, so we can better understand how members of the
community define and prioritize the problems of poverty in Brazos County. Additionally, some
members of our team will serve as volunteers for the BCSSA during the holiday season. This
will give us insight into the organizations everyday operations. We are confident this varied
mix of research methods will allow us to provide robust conclusions and promising
recommendationstotheBCSSA.
145
Hagglund,Diane.2009.InDepthInterviews,FocusGroups,orBoth?DimensionalResearchAccessed
October2015.
http://www.dimensionalresearch.com/blog/2009/03/02/indepth
interviewsfocusgroupsorboth.
146
2013.
HandbookofSurveyResearch
.EditedbyPeterH.Rossi,JamesD.WrightandAndyB.Anderson.
NewYork:NewYork:AcademicPress.
29
ResearchDesign
Asstatedpreviously,ourresearchwillfollowaqualitativedesign.Ourresearchplanconsistsof:
Secondary data from the City of Bryan and City of College Station Consolidated Plans.
Theseplansprovideimportantdatabasedaboutthecitieshousingandcommunityneeds.
We will use these plans to review high community demands, housing and nonhousing
needs, along with available local resources for the general population of the City of
Bryan and the City of College Station. We will address questions concerning the top
housing needs in BryanCollege Station,thenumber ofsheltersinthearea,specifictypes
ofshelters,andtheircapacities.
Salvation Army Documents
. Official documents obtained from the BCSSA, such as
monthly reports and budgets, will help us better understand the BCSSAsorganizational
functions,operations,andfiscalconditions.Wewillreviewthesedocumentstoidentifyif
there are any current trends and whether the demand for food assistance and utility
assistancehasincreased,stayedthesame,ordeclinedoveraperiodoftime.
Brazos County Statistics.
We will use national secondary datasets such as the American
Community Survey, datasets from the NationalCenterforEducationStatistics,andother
datasets on Community Commons to deepen our understanding of poverty in Brazos
County and explore its geographical distribution. We will identify the specific areas in
the county that have the greatest need and determine whether services are accessible to
thoselocations.
Available Grants.
Foundations, nonprofit agencies, and federal, state, and local
government agencies offer grants related to specific human services. Researching these
grantswillallowforustoidentifypossiblefundingsourcesfor theBCSSA.As wesearch
for compatible funders we will focus on finding grants that are relevant to, and
appropriate for, the BCSSA and determine which areas of need funders are currently
prioritizing. For each grant we will identify the title, total funding amount available, the
minimum and maximum amounts awarded to a single entity, length of the grant award,
purposeofthegrants,applicationrequirements,andimplementationrequirements.
Brazos County Human Service Providers.
Identifying the human service providers
currently present in Brazos county will allow us to see the extent to whichhumanneeds
are being met. In identifying these providers,wewillworkwithinformationprovidedby
United Way of Brazos Valley, Project Unity, the City of Bryan, and the City of College
Station. When creating the list of providers, wewillidentifytheservicesbeingprovided,
the requirements and qualifications for receiving service, the number of people these
organizationsserve,andwheretheseorganizationsarelocated.
Interviews.
Interviews with key stakeholders, human service providers, and community
leaders will give us an avenue for engaging in conversations about health, hunger,
housing and education/youth development needs in the Brazos County area. General
questions will focus on the needs interviewees see in Brazos County, what challenges
30
they haveencounteredwhiletryingtoaddressthem,whatspecificactionsarebeingtaken
to resolve them, and what experience interviewees have had working with BCSSA.
Specific questions will be tailored for each interviewee. Each interview will berecorded
forfutureanalysis.
All our research will be conducted between September 2015 and March 2016. The majority of
our research involving secondary data will be completed by December 2015, while research
involving primary data will be completed by March 2016. Below is a timeline of our research
plan.
31
Current Status
We are in the process of collecting data from various resources we identified as critical in
determining the needs of Brazos County. The following flowchartillustratesourprogresstothis
pointintime.Blueindicatescompletedtasks.
32
Budget Update
No adjustment to the budget is requiredatthistime. Wehavenotsoughtanyreimbursementfor
expenses yet, as no charges have been made in the course of our initial research. We anticipate
the same costs included in our initial budget over the coming months. Figure 2 contains the
projectedbudgetapprovedinthescopeofwork.
Figure2ProjectedBudget
Item
Amount
UnitCost
Frequency
Subtotal
Rentalvehicle
$40.00
$160.00
Fuel(gallons)
24
$2.30
$110.40
Meals
14
$10.00
$280.00
Datacollection(datasets)
$50.00
$250.00
FacilityRental
$150.00
$300.00
LongDistance
CallingCard
$20.00
$20.00
SurveyMaterials
50
$0.16
$16.00
PrintedReports
$62.45
$312.25
Total
$1,448.65
Data Requested from BCSSA

The BCSSA has been extremely giving of their time to the team. They have led the team on a
site visit of their facilities and provided numerous documents that will be utilized by the team.
Their promptness in responding to correspondence has also been appreciated. After comparing
the initial scope of work with the documents received by the team, the following informationis
requested,ifavailable:
MostrecentCorpsCongregationEvaluationPlanningReview
Data collected through surveys, focus groups, and interviews by the BryanCollege
StationSalvationArmysincethe2009MissionPlanningStudy.
It may be the case that some of the requestedinformationfromthescopeofworkmaynotexist,
or may not exist in therequestedformat. Ifthatisthecase,pleaseletusknowsothatsubsequent
researchcanbeadjusted.
33
Next Steps
Having completed our scope of work and literature review, we will continue ourdatacollection
efforts. As previouslydiscussed,wewillcompleteourreviewofsecondarydatabythemiddleof
December. In addition, we will conduct surveys and interviewswithvariousstakeholdersacross
the county to give us primary data that will supplement our secondary data findings. We are
contacting Centers of Hope here in Texas and intend to make site visits tothesefacilities.Once
data collection is complete, we will analyze our findings and develop our conclusions and
recommendations. The project will culminate in a final report and presentation in May for the
BCSSAwhenwewillsharethesefindings.
Conclusion
Based on the research literature we have explored, and the data we are collecting, our capstone
team will help ensure that the BCSSA is able to continue totouchthousandsoflivesthroughits
work to meet human needs without discrimination at an optimal level. We will help BCSSA
leaders identify current local community needs and determine the best ways to leverage the
organizations strengths to sustainably meet thoseneeds.Byconductingthoroughresearchusing
appropriate methods, wewillbetterunderstandthecontextinwhichtheBCSSAoperatesandthe
programs and services it offers. We look forward to continuing our search for solutions to
povertyinBrazosCounty.
34
Appendix: Providing Disaster Assistance

Providing disaster assistance is a challenging task foranyorganization.Organizationthathavea
comprehensive plan in place, however, can ensure that individuals and families in crisis can
receive the supplies they need. In the following paper, we overview concepts that organizations
providingdisasterassistancehaveusedtoplansuccessfuloperations.
FormingPartnerships
Disaster assistance providers can realize a number of benefits from partnering with other
organizations during disaster relief operations. They can receive support in the forms of
147
transportation, personnel, funding, and legitimacy by partnering with other organizations.
They can also provide the same benefits to their partners.TheSalvationArmy,forexample,has
a wellknown name and could lend legitimacy to many other smaller organizations that are
lesserknown. Other potential benefits to organizations located in close proximity to a disaster
include assistance with construction efforts and food distribution.
In the event of a disaster in
Brazos County, the BCSSA mightaccessextensivedistributionnetworksandpersonnelandthus
broadentheirimpactdespitetheirrelativelysmallstaffbypartneringwithotherlocalagencies.
PrePositionedSupplies
The strategic positioning of supplies is of vital importance when assisting those affected by a
disaster. Prepositioning supplies in warehouses is a way to ensure resources are secure and
148
nearby when they are needed. The warehouses where supplies are stored, as well as the
infrastructure that will be needed to move the supplies, has to be identified in advance of a
disaster. TheBCSSAsgeographiclocationprovidesanopportunity tostageemergencysupplies
near areas susceptible to hurricanes. It is an area far enough away that supplies would not be
damaged during a hurricane, but close enough that response time would be minimal once the
threat hassubsided.Coordinationbeforethedisasteroccursisessentialwithoutit,eventhemost
carefullystored supplies will not be staged and ready. For the BCSSA, this could involve
moving the supplies away from the coast to the BryanCollege Station area as a hurricane
approaches, and then returning them for distribution atasitelikeHoustonorGalvestononcethe
storm has dissipated. This would ensure the safety of the supplies during the disaster.
Coordination might also occur locally, with the BCSSA collecting supplies from supporters in
theBryanCollegeStationareaandstagingtheminadvanceofahurricane.
TheEmergencyManagementCycle
The emergency management cycle consists of four phases: prevention, preparedness, response,
149
and recovery. NPOs can play a role in any of the four phases by providing services such as
home repair, information dissemination, emotional and spiritual support, or microloans. The
147
Coles,John,JunZhuang,andJustinYates.2011.CaseStudyinDisasterRelief:ADescriptiveAnalysisof
AgencyPartnershipsintheAftermathofJanuary12th,2010HaitianEarthquake.
SocioEconomic
PlanningScience
s46(1):6777.
148
Davis,Lauren,FundaSamanlioglu,XiuliQu,andSarahRoot.2012.InventoryPlanningandCoordinationin
DisasterReliefEfforts.
InternationalJournalofProductionEconomics
141(2)
:561
573.
149
Arlikatti,Sudha.2012.RoleofVoluntarySectorOrganizationsinPostTsunamiRelief:Compensatoryor
Complementary?
Socio
EconomicPlanningSciences34(3)
:64.
35
approaches taken by a given organization depend on the extent of its resources,theneedsofthe

community,andanyspecialinterestsinherentinitsmissionandvision.
DecisionMakingDuringaDisaster
Therearemanyunknownsinthewakeofadisaster,sodisasterassistanceprovidersoperateinan
150
uncertain environment. These organizations can obtain a better understanding of a crisis in
progress by identifying hazards and mapping degraded infrastructure. This will allow for better
decisions on how supplies are distributed to those in need. Having a handle on the logistics of
providing assistance after a disaster makes it easier for leaders to make informed decisions.
Knowing the road conditions, status of the electric grid, and locations of supplies allows
organizers to know where in the community the need is highest, as well as how to provide
suppliestothoselocations.
Although the assessments just described are extremely helpful during a crisis, good
decisionmaking starts well before a disaster ever occurs. It is crucial for all participants in
providing disaster assistance understand their organizations policiesandprocedures.And,since
nearly every disaster response is a collaboration between multiple organizations, period
rehearsals can help ensure that every player knows his or her role and helps leaders anticipate
potential challenges. Finally, disaster assistance providers must ensure that adequate supplies,
resources, and equipment are available and in good condition, ready to be utilized when that
unexpectedcrisisoccurs.
By forging strategic partnerships, considering the proper placement of supplies, identifying its
role in the emergency management cycle, and planning aheadforeffectivedecisionmaking,the
BCSSAcanensurethatitcontinuestodothemostgoodintimesofcrisis.
150
Begoa,VitorianoJ.,J.TinguaroRodriguez,GregorioTirado,F.JavierMartin
Campo,M.TeresaOrtuno,and
JavierMontero.2014.IntelligentDecision
MakingModelsforDisasterManagement.
Humanand
EcologicalRiskAssessment:AnInternationalJournal21(5)
:1341
1360.
36

Capstone Interim Report

Diunggah oleh

Informasi Dokumen

Deskripsi Asli:

Judul Asli

Hak Cipta

Format Tersedia

Bagikan dokumen Ini

Bagikan atau Tanam Dokumen

Opsi Berbagi

Apakah menurut Anda dokumen ini bermanfaat?

Apakah konten ini tidak pantas?

Hak Cipta:

Format Tersedia

Capstone Interim Report

Diunggah oleh

Hak Cipta:

Format Tersedia

The Bush School of Government and Public Service

Recommended citation format:

We begin by reviewing our

Our Literature Review leads directly to an overview of our

We remain committed to providing the BCSSA with highquality, evidencebased

Please notethatalthoughouroriginal ScopeofWorkMemoincluded

Caucasian, Hispanic/Latino, and AfricanAmerican residents. There is also a sharp contrast

As of 2007, Brazos County is home to nearly 14,000 businesses.7 Although employment is

The Salvation Army can be classified asanonprofitorganizationanda faithbasedorganization.

Strategic planning is a process of organizational change through adisciplinedeffort toproduce

families.29 More than 23 percentofthehomelessarechildrenunder18yearsofageandlessthan

Shelters have long been communities shortterm solution to combatting homelessness.

authority can be difficult.45 Moreover, theprospectoflosingonesbedforarrivinglateorfailing

In the public assistance strand,the SupplementalNutritionAssistanceProgram(SNAP,formerly

A number of issues limit the effectiveness ofthecurrentfoodassistancesystem.First,eligibility

Although the foregoing is a bleakpictureofthefoodassistancelandscape,therearenevertheless

Several mental health trends in thestateofTexasarenoteworthy.First,ofthoseindividuals who

To tackle this issue, a numberofhumanservicenonprofitsattempttoaddressindividualshealth

people between the ages of 50 and 64 are increasingly likely todevelophealthproblemsbutare

It is important forCHCoperatorstoensurethe patientsingreatestneedhaveaccesstotheclinic.

Education and Youth Development

Collaboration and Collective Impact

For participants to come to an agreement on shared measurements means there is consensus on

As in every group activity, continuous communication is a lifeline in collective impact efforts.

Strategic Planning for New Program Adoption

The principlesofnewproductdevelopment(NPD)areapotentiallyhelpful, albeitunderstudied,

services: 1) aligning new products with organizational strategy, 2) managing products as a

From this question, and based on our research to date, wehaveidentifiedanumberofquestions

Data Requested from BCSSA

Appendix: Providing Disaster Assistance

approaches taken by a given organization depend on the extent of its resources,theneedsofthe

Anda mungkin juga menyukai