Our Initiative

Our Communities for All Ages Team:

Baltimore Lab School

The Barclay School

Charles Village Recreation League

Greater Homewood Community Corporation

Margaret Brent Elementary and Middle School

Safe Routes to School

Village Learning Place

Funders:

- Baltimore Community Foundation

Phase of Development: Assessment

Start date: March 2010

Assessing Community Assets and Challenges:

To determine where to focus their energies, the Greater Charles Village team reached out to engage the large community. Through a series of focus groups and one on one interviews, we asked Greater Charles Village residents to describe what they like about their community and what could make it even better. Residents of all ages overwhelmingly expressed a desire for a set of central locations in the neighborhood that could seve as centers of volunteerism, social services, recreation, and fellowship. After completing a comprehensive assessment, the team found that there is already a considerable amount of momentum behind the community schools initiative, which seeks to turn schools into resources for the whole community. Team members see the potential for breaking down racial, socioeconomic, and age barriers by focusing on increasing support for the schools. Therefore, the team decided to focus on bolstering and expanding the initiative, by helping to expand the programming already underway at these sites.