Helping Communities Ask the Tough Questions: The Promise Neighborhoods Institute Planning Guide

Planning a Promise Neighborhood guide, recently released by the Bridgespan Group and the Promise Neighborhoods Institute (PNI), provides communities with a much needed resource to assist with the development of a successful Promise Neighborhood initiative. Just one of the many resources available from PNI, the guide encourages communities to ask and answer the tough strategic questions during the planning process. The five critical questions highlighted in the guide are:

1.  What do we know about the children and families we want to support, and how should we focus our efforts?  
2. What activities and programs do we need to provide in order to deliver measurable results? 
3. How should our partnership be structured and what capabilities will we need to succeed?
4. How do we plan for our funding so that we can get the resources we need to achieve our goals and sustain our efforts over the long-term? 
5. How will we reach all of the children that our initiative aspires to impact?

Although not intended to be a comprehensive tool by any means, PNI hopes that the guide will help neighborhood initiatives create an effective decision-making process, which at times may even challenge their values. In choosing a target population, for example, initiatives may have to make difficult choices such as whether to target the neediest children and families or residents with modest needs and resources. Both populations will need help, but with limited resources a choice will have to be made. Having these open conversations early on in the planning process, will help initiatives succeed overtime. To find out more, visit the Promise Neighborhoods Institute.