[ «Nehemiah Community Development Corporation Annual Report 2010 Empowering indigenous learners and leaders to bring about hope, transformation and ...»
Nehemiah Community Development Corporation
Annual Report 2010
Empowering indigenous learners and leaders
to bring about hope, transformation and justice
for themselves, their families and their communities.
In 2010 Nehemiah experienced an incredibly fortuitous year. After countless hours of strategic planning and
staff meetings, Nehemiah staff succeeded in redefining itself as a premier transformational leadership
development organization. This meant that we were no longer interested in merely offering traditional community-based social services to individuals and families, but rather culturally competent transformational leadership development experiences. This type of leadership development not only provides the skills that are necessary for success in tough living situations, but it also stresses the responsibility of those we serve to give back to the others in our community. Traditional social service providers often unwittingly aid hurting communities by keeping people as victims and never empowering them to give back to their community as part of the personal plan of care.
Additionally, this new direction has allowed Nehemiah to attract a major financial partner, The Grace and Mercy Foundation, from New York City, NY. They are interested in our youth leadership development and academic empowerment programs and as well as our re-entry work with male ex-offenders.
The direction we are taking and the significant impact we are having in people’s lives has made this a very invigorating year for me. I look forward to giving my energy to the further the expansion of our work and transformation of our community in the year to come.
Together transforming, Rev. Dr. Alex Gee, Nehemiah President
ABOUT NEHEMIAH
Vision:
Empowering disenfranchised learners and leaders to bring about hope, transformation and justice for themselves, their families and their communities.
Our Values:
Connecting with people through meaningful relationships Rebuilding the cultural and spiritual identity of those we serve Respecting the inherent worth and value of each person Serving with cultural awareness and competency Honoring the wisdom and leadership within the community
Our Distinctives:
Our staff workers live as listeners and learners within the community We offer programs that encourage success for people in all life stages We care for the needs of the whole person in our work We develop the inherent leadership abilities in those who are often marginalized We empower people to transform their lives by providing them with valuable resources, tools and skills We serve the under-resourced population of the greater Madison area, with a primary focus on at-risk African American families. Nehemiah addresses the needs of the entire family by focusing on spiritual issues, economic needs and academic success. We inspire transformation by building meaningful relationships, providing coaching and mentoring, creating peer support groups and offering mediation and advocacy. In order to interrupt the cycle of poverty, racism, and discrimination that many families face, we concentrate on prevention, early intervention, education and restoration. We also collaborate with established leaders in our community and develop emerging urban leaders to transform our powerful vision into meaningful reality.
Statistics About the People We Serve:
African Americans in Dane County are three times as likely as the community as a whole to live below the poverty line and experience unemployment, half as likely to hold management positions, and twice as likely to work in service operations.
Only 74% of Black adults hold a high school diploma, compared with 93% of the full community.
40% of Black students drop out before completing high school.
African Americans, who make up 20% of the school district, comprise 40% of its suspensions and expulsions.
African Americans are incarcerated a more than 13 times the rate for the community at large.
37% of Blacks live in poverty, compared to the 11% of the community as a whole.
The median income for Black households in Dane County lags behind the overall community by more than $22,000.
31% of Blacks ages 25-45 in metropolitan Madison are out of the labor force, compared with 13 percent for the community as a whole.
26% of Blacks have no health insurance all or part of the time, compared with 9% of the entire community Only 32% of Black residents in Wisconsin own homes compared to 71% of white residents
Nefertiti, a girls group, happens in partnership with Wright Middle School. The girls in the group are engaged in creative writing via poetry, journaling and directed writing exercise as well as artistic projects. They are also given opportunities to increase their communication skills by presenting their writing and projects.
PROGRAMS Nia (meaning “purpose” in Swahili) There were 6 Nia participants in 2010.
This coaching-based mentoring program is for temporary workers who come to us through various government agencies. We help them explore their passions and develop their skills as they prepare for more permanent work options.
The purpose of this program is to provide assistance to one of the most struggling neighborhoods in the Madison area. Although assistance providers abound in this area, there are yet basic needs not being met, and a large part of the population is still underrepresented in service agencies. The goal of this program is to act as a bridge between the already present service providers and the individuals with urgent needs.
Some of the main benefits this program provide to the
residents of Allied include:
Assisting single women/mothers in developing independent living skills Helping individuals maintain clean and livable homes Connecting people with serious health issues to programs that can assist them in becoming well again Teaching basic surviving and thriving skills to people who are barely making it day to day Providing spiritual care and connections
Staff Rev. Dr. Alexander Gee, President and Founder Rich Henderson, Director of Operations and Development Ozanne J. Anderson, Director of ACE Lilada Gee, Director of Curriculum Development and Community Programming Jerome Dillard, Director of Re-Entry and Advocacy Services Autumn Swain, Director of LIGHT Gloria Manadier-Farr, Community Chaplin in the Allied Dunn’s Marsh Community Volunteers Nehemiah is largely run through the contributions of dedicated volunteers. Thank you to all of you who have spent your time and talents—we appreciate those who have served for a few hours or who have given their time for a few months.
We know that our participants and the community have been beneficiaries.
Community Collaborations and Partnerships Allied Wellness Center (alliedwellnesscenter.org) Bakke Graduate University (bgu.edu) Boys & Girls Club of Dane County (bgcdc.org) Christian Community Development Association (ccda.org) Dane County Department of Human Services (danecountyhumanservices.org) Edgerton Gear (edgertongear.com) InterVarsity Christian Fellowship (intervarsity.org) Joining Forces for Families Lilada’s Livingroom (lilada.org) Madison Area Churches, notably: Assumption Greek Orthodox, Christ Presbyterian, Covenant Presbyterian, Damascus Road, Door Creek Evangelical Free, Fountain of Life, and Gateway Community Madison Metropolitan School District (madison.k12.wi.us) Second Harvest Foodbank (secondharvestmadison.org) United Way of Dane County (unitedwaydanecounty.org) University of Wisconsin (wisc.edu) Urban League of Greater Madison (ulgm.org) 2010 FINANCES Income Grant Revenue 22,177 Performance Contracts 12,867 Donations 224,799 Other Income 1,974 Total Income 261,818
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