Communities Helping All Neighbors Gain Empowerment
Encyclopedia
Communities Helping All Neighbors Gain Empowerment, or CHANGE, is a Winston-Salem
, North Carolina
based non-profit organization
founded in 2002 that encourages civic participation among local residents. Affiliated with Industrial Areas Foundation
, CHANGE is made up of and funded by some 45 religious congregations, neighborhood associations, and other groups, and claims a membership base of 18,000.
CHANGE's agenda is divided into five main categories: Youth and Education
, Jobs
and Economic Development
, Health Care
, Housing and Neighborhoods
, and Local Government
. "Action Teams," which gather via house meetings, research each category to determine needs and issues that can be immediately addressed by lobbying local government, non-profit and/or corporate leaders.
Each member organization is represented on either the Clergy
Caucus
(for congregational-based representatives) or the Metro Council (for lay leaders). Recommendations made by Action Teams are voted on by these councils, and a 75% vote of support is required before any action is taken. A thirteen-member strategy team, made up of members from the two councils, also participates in voting.
Some successful campaigns led by CHANGE in the past have included the creation of equity standards in schooling, the creation of a bond
oversight commission in Forsyth County Schools
, distribution of employment assistance booklets, usage of a local economic development fund to draw the business of a major computer manufacturer, providing summer jobs for teenagers, auditing of reduced cost health clinics, the creation of a free dental care program, documentation of neighborhood maintenance issues, education drives to improve public participation in city government, increasing Health Department regulations on toxic lead-based paint, and conducting leadership training seminars.
Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Winston-Salem is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina, with a 2010 population of 229,617. Winston-Salem is the county seat and largest city of Forsyth County and the fourth-largest city in the state. Winston-Salem is the second largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region and is home to...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
based non-profit organization
Non-profit organization
Nonprofit organization is neither a legal nor technical definition but generally refers to an organization that uses surplus revenues to achieve its goals, rather than distributing them as profit or dividends...
founded in 2002 that encourages civic participation among local residents. Affiliated with Industrial Areas Foundation
Industrial Areas Foundation
The Industrial Areas Foundation is a national community organizing network established in 1940 by Saul Alinsky. IAF provides training and consultation, furnishes organizers, and develops national strategy for its affiliated broad-based community organizations. There are currently 57 IAF...
, CHANGE is made up of and funded by some 45 religious congregations, neighborhood associations, and other groups, and claims a membership base of 18,000.
Organization and service
The current Lead Organizer for CHANGE is Rev. Ryan M. Eller]. In recent years CHANGE has developed into one of the most successful and effective organizations in North Carolina.CHANGE's agenda is divided into five main categories: Youth and Education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
, Jobs
Employment
Employment is a contract between two parties, one being the employer and the other being the employee. An employee may be defined as:- Employee :...
and Economic Development
Economic development
Economic development generally refers to the sustained, concerted actions of policymakers and communities that promote the standard of living and economic health of a specific area...
, Health Care
Health care
Health care is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers...
, Housing and Neighborhoods
Neighbourhood
A neighbourhood or neighborhood is a geographically localised community within a larger city, town or suburb. Neighbourhoods are often social communities with considerable face-to-face interaction among members. "Researchers have not agreed on an exact definition...
, and Local Government
Local government
Local government refers collectively to administrative authorities over areas that are smaller than a state.The term is used to contrast with offices at nation-state level, which are referred to as the central government, national government, or federal government...
. "Action Teams," which gather via house meetings, research each category to determine needs and issues that can be immediately addressed by lobbying local government, non-profit and/or corporate leaders.
Each member organization is represented on either the Clergy
Clergy
Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. A clergyman, churchman or cleric is a member of the clergy, especially one who is a priest, preacher, pastor, or other religious professional....
Caucus
Caucus
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a political party or movement, especially in the United States and Canada. As the use of the term has been expanded the exact definition has come to vary among political cultures.-Origin of the term:...
(for congregational-based representatives) or the Metro Council (for lay leaders). Recommendations made by Action Teams are voted on by these councils, and a 75% vote of support is required before any action is taken. A thirteen-member strategy team, made up of members from the two councils, also participates in voting.
Some successful campaigns led by CHANGE in the past have included the creation of equity standards in schooling, the creation of a bond
Bond (finance)
In finance, a bond is a debt security, in which the authorized issuer owes the holders a debt and, depending on the terms of the bond, is obliged to pay interest to use and/or to repay the principal at a later date, termed maturity...
oversight commission in Forsyth County Schools
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools
Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools is a school district in Forsyth County, North Carolina. WS/FCS has over 75 schools in its system, and it serves over 53,300 students every year. WS/FCS was formed in 1963 by the merger of the Forsyth County School System and the Winston-Salem School System...
, distribution of employment assistance booklets, usage of a local economic development fund to draw the business of a major computer manufacturer, providing summer jobs for teenagers, auditing of reduced cost health clinics, the creation of a free dental care program, documentation of neighborhood maintenance issues, education drives to improve public participation in city government, increasing Health Department regulations on toxic lead-based paint, and conducting leadership training seminars.