A Twenty-first Century Approach to Community Change ─ Partnering to Improve Life Outcomes for Youth and Families in Under-Served Neighborhoods

Urban renewal has been the dominant approach to revitalizing industrialized communities that fall into decline. A national, community-based organization, the Skillman Foundation sought to engage in a joint effort with the University of Michigan's School of Social Work to bring six neighborhoods in one such declining urban center, Detroit, back to positions of strength and national leadership. A Twenty-First Century Approach to Community Change introduces readers to the basis for the Foundation's solicitation of social work expertise and the social context within which the work of technical assistance began. Building on research, the authors introduce the theory and practice knowledge of earlier scholars, including the conduct of needs assessments at multiple levels, engagement of community members in identifying problem-solving strategies, assistance in developing community goals, and implementation of social work field instruction opportunities. Lessons learned and challenges are described as they played out in the process of creating partnerships for the Foundation with community leaders, engaging and maintaining youth involvement, managing roles and relationships with multiple partners recruited by the Foundation for their specialized expertise, and ultimately conducting the work of technical assistance within a context of increasing influence of the city's surrounding systems (political, economic, educational, and social). Readers will especially note the role of technical assistance in an evolving theory of change.

Paula G. Allen-Meares, PhD, MSW, Chancellor Emerita, John Corbally Presidential Professor, Professor of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago; Executive Director, Office of Health Literacy, University of Illinois at Chicago; Dean and Professor Emerita/Norma Radin Collegiate Professor, School of Social Work, University of Michigan

Trina R. Shanks, PhD, MSW, MPh, Associate Professor, School of Social Work, University of Michigan

Larry M. Gant, PhD, MA, MSW, Professor, School of Social Work; Professor, Penny W. Stamps School of Art and Design, University of Michigan

Leslie D. Hollingsworth, PhD, MSW, Associate Professor Emerita, School of Social Work, University of Michigan

Patricia L. Miller, MSW, Past Project Director, School of Social Work Technical Assistance Center, University of Michigan