Profiles of Successful Dialogue-to-Change Programs Working on Poverty

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May 14, 2008 | |

Sitting Bull College, North Dakota

Sitting Bull College in Fort Yates, North Dakota, works with 18 tribal communities across Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota using the Horizons program to help rural communities move from poverty to prosperity. Horizons—a project of the Northwest Area Foundation, in partnership with Everyday Democracy and the Pew Partnership for Civic Change—has engaged citizens in 163 communities across the Upper Midwest, Great Plains, and Northwest.

Horizons is a multifaceted program. Participants talk about how poverty affects their communities, then build community leadership to help manage change in the community.  Participants in Horizons communities affiliated with Sitting Bull develop a clearer understanding of the effects of chronic intergenerational poverty on families and communities. They also come to understand the importance of partnerships in creating prosperity, and that leadership comes in all forms. Finally, the communities are led through a holistic process to engage Native communities to envision their future and reclaim balance.
www.sittingbull.edu/horizons/

Warren County, North Carolina

How can greater student success benefit the entire community? That’s the question that people in Warrenton, North Carolina, and nearby counties have been asking for the past two years in dialogue-to-action programs to bridge racial and ethnic divides and to narrow the achievement gap. Beyond trying to “fix the schools,” organizers helped citizens focus on a wide range of community issues, including juvenile justice services, family support, and recreation.

Action teams are working on creating stronger community and school connections and overcoming community apathy. The work—coordinated by the Rural School and Community Trust and community partners and funded by a grant from the Kellogg Foundation—aims to help build community-based infrastructures and programs to move vulnerable rural North Carolina youth and families out of poverty and improve their ability to live and thrive in their hometowns.