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vision 20/20
The Vision 20/20 Initiative is a broad-based, grassroots coalition of more than 40 community stakeholders working to stop and prevent gang and community violence in Pasadena and Altadena. The Initiative was launched by Pasadena Councilmember Jacque Robinson after a series of gang-related shootings took the lives of ten local young people in 2007. Flintridge serves on the Organizing Team that develops the agenda for Vision 20/20’s collaborative efforts and provides overall coordination and fiscal management for the alliance. With technical support from the L.A. County Commission on Human Relations and Flintridge’s facilitation, the coalition is developing and implementing practical and strategic solutions to prevent and reduce community violence.
The Apprenticeship Preparation Program addresses the need for jobs and job training as a strategy to provide alternatives to gang involvement. The free, junior college-level course, combined with case management services, helps individuals who are hard-to-employ, gang-impacted or have been incarcerated prepare for paid apprenticeships and careers in the construction trades. Pasadena City College provides instructors for the course; the City of Pasadena provides the use of community centers for two classes each semester; 12 unions participate by providing speakers or hosting site visits to training centers; Pasadena Mental Health Center provides case management; multiple nonprofit and governmental programs refer their constituents; and Flintridge coordinates the collaborative program and raises funds to sustain it.
The Community Violence Intervention-Prevention Institute & Network provides gang intervention and violence prevention education to service providers and community volunteers working with gang-impacted youth, young adults and their families. The Institute’s pilot class launched in the summer of 2009 with technical support from the L.A. County Commission on Human Relations and funding from The California Endowment. A second session followed, concluding in February 2010. The next session starts in April.
Taught by community gang experts, the free, 36-hour course teaches participants about outreach strategies and conflict resolution techniques used to defuse situations of tension and conflict. The curriculum covers the root causes of violence, gang history and dynamics. Participants also learn about the range of local social service programs and resources so that they can help troubled individuals and their families find assistance. A total of 26 participants have completed the intensive course.
A concerted approach to violence prevention
The Vision 20/20 coalition will form the basis for developing greater collaboration among community organizations and city agencies working to prevent and reduce outbreaks of violence. In March 2010, Flintridge was selected by the Pasadena City Council to serve as the community-based “institutional home” for local service providers addressing community violence.
The need for a lead agency to serve as a convener and facilitator for a collaborative effort was among the recommendations in a recent analysis of Pasadena’s youth/young adult service gaps. Flintridge’s responsibilities will include convening providers, creating linkages to close critical service gaps (particularly for at-risk young adults between the ages of 17 and 25) and helping to ensure the effective coordination of city services and policies to effectively deal with violence. This will involve expanding the Vision 20/20 partnership and its activities and mobilizing a concerted, cross-sector response to deliver comprehensive and integrated services.
At the Council meeting, Executive Director Christy Zamani, Day One, noted that over 40 nonprofits supported Flintridge’s designation, saying that it was “a testament to the trust, care and true commitment they [Flintridge] have made to us as a community to work on these issues…. I am grateful for them every day for what they bring to the table, to convene us and give us the support we need to work together and move us forward with these issues.”
Photo: Brian Biery
