Accomplishments

DART organizations throughout the United States have won victories on a broad set of issues. Below we have provided a compilation of victories from DART affiliates only in the last four years. This is an abbreviated list ordered by interest areas in order to illustrate what can be accomplished when congregations organize together to do justice. For a more comprehensive list from a city-by-city perspective, please read about each of our local affiliate's work in the DART Network Directory.
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Public Education Improvement
As you will see below, DART organizations have been highly effective at improving the quality of public education in various ways. First and foremost, many DART organizations have succeeded in implementing and expanding effective reading curriculum in our public schools such as Direct Instruction (DI). DI is a phonics-based structured approach of teaching children to read that has proven to accelerate learning for at-risk students in public schools. Implementing this way of teaching kids to read has vastly improved historically low performing public schools and provided children the opportunity to master one of life’s most basic necessities for success: reading.

In addition to improving our school system’s capacity to teach reading, DART organizations have also succeeded in addressing in-school bullying, suspension policies, early childhood development/Universal Pre-Kindergarten programming, truancy, quality teacher training and retention policies, school-based health programming, post-graduation planning for high school students, building maintenance problems, and improved school-wide behavior/discipline. See below for details on some of our most recent victories.

2009
Toledo, OH - Following up on their victory on out-of-school suspension in 2008, TUSA found that 6,000 students were suspended out-of-school in the 2007-2008 school year totaling 47,000 days of school missed. Furthermore, the top two reasons for suspensions are the failure to follow instructions and disobedient behavior. Students who are suspended three times are more likely to drop out of school. At their 2009 Nehemiah Action, TUSA won commitments from 4 of 5 school board members to implement Positive Behavior Support, a research-based discipline program in the Toledo Public Schools for the 2009-2010 school year. This program provides a structured approach to discipline that is successful at reducing out-of-school suspensions. Additionally, TUSA received commitments to fund 4 full days of training and to hire a Coordinator to oversee the long-term implementation of the program. On May 26, 2009, all five school board members voted in favor of a resolution to support the Positive Behavior Support program. Training started in the summer of 2009 for all of the Elementary schools in the Toledo Public Schools System.

Daytona Beach, FL – FAITH has continued to work with the Volusia County School District to improve reading ability for at-risk students in Title 1 schools. Direct Instruction (DI) was implemented in two pilot schools in 2001 and became a tool for children reading below grade level in 12 additional schools in 2003. In 2008, many Title 1 schools implemented an additional hour of instruction through the Plus One program, which gives the students an extra dose of DI each day. As of 2009, 13 Volusia County schools are implementing DI and the Volusia County School District continues to partner with FAITH by supporting the program, providing training for teachers and reading coaches, and closely monitoring the results of the program.

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2008
Tallahassee, FL – During the 2005-2006 school year, 2,785 kids served out-of-school suspension. Research shows that the majority of youth who serve out-of-school suspensions are unsupervised. Realizing that this behavior leads to increased gang activity, higher dropout rates and crime, TEAM’s leaders worked with Superintendent Pons to implement an alternative to out-of-school suspension where kids are staying in a supervised academic environment during their suspension. This program is called the Center for Student Intervention (CSI), which launched on Feb. 19, 2008 at Ghazvini Learning Center. Furthermore, Leon County Schools hosted the “Including Every Parent” workshop on June 12th, 2008.

Toledo, OH - As of May 2008, TUSA’s research showed that in the Toledo Public Schools (TPS), 25% of the entire student enrollment was in out-of-school suspension. In some schools over 50% of the student enrollment was suspended out of school. In addition, many of these schools also rank the lowest in academic achievement. At their May 2008 Nehemiah Action, TUSA asked Superintendent John Foley to implement a research-based program (Safe & Civil Schools) in ten schools to equip teachers with better tools to address discipline, reduce suspensions, and improve test scores. Superintendant Foley agreed. Currently, TUSA’s Education Committee is meeting with Mr. Foley throughout the summer to develop a strategy to target the 10 schools (See 2009 for further details).

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2007
Columbus, OH - BREAD received commitments from County Prosecutor Ron O’Brien to agree to convene stakeholders from local schools, the Juvenile Courts, and others to develop a comprehensive truancy reduction plan. Truants are students who have several outstanding unexcused absences. A pilot version of the “KEY” Truancy Program was implemented in December 2007 and has resulted in over 200 mediations and 150 goal attainments from chronically truant children.

Evansville, IN - The CAJE organization received commitments from the Evansville-Vanderburgh County School Corporation (EVSC) school board for a pilot program designed to increase the number of at-risk high school students in technical training by 25% each year. The EVSC school board also agreed to a new six-point implementation plan of the reading program from kindergarten to third grade to increase Evansville’s public school literacy rates. CAJE leadership has been meeting with the EVSC school board quarterly to monitor the progress of these two programs.

Pinellas County, FL - Because of the work of FAST, 37 public schools in Pinellas County have implemented school-wide discipline programs. 23 of these schools are part of a pilot project using the Foundations/CHAMPS model of proactive, instructional, and positive behavior management. As a result, over 40,000 students benefited from a safer and more productive learning environment. The school district is evaluating these programs to ensure that they are reaching their full potential. In 2009, FAST will continue to push for these programs to be expanded to all schools with a higher than 10% suspension rate.

West Palm Beach, FL – PEACE held its Nehemiah Action in March 2007 where Superintendent Johnson committed to make significant improvements to the flawed system of alternative education in the School District. Since then, the number of students transferred to alternative schools has decreased from 2,700 students to 1,200 students. Also, FCAT (Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test) participation rates in the alternative schools are at nearly 100% and significant learning gains are expected.

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2006
Daytona Beach, Florida – FAITH had two accomplishments in education in 2006. First, the Volusia County School District agreed to the FAITH organization’s push to increase the number of students eligible for Direct Instruction (DI) by 10%. This program had previously been championed by FAITH. In 2006, because of an increasing number of third grade students using DI Reading Curriculum, FAITH’s Education Committee was proud to announce that third grade FCAT scores reached an all time high.

Jacksonville, FL – ICARE organized 50 parents and 175 educators to visit nationally recognized schools in Houston, Baltimore, and Columbus for research into improving Duval County Schools. As a result, ICARE worked with the Duval County School Board to implement Direct Instruction (DI) into fifteen elementary schools. ICARE also worked to obtain a $7.2 million state appropriation ($1.2 million for Duval County) supporting research-proven reading curriculums in low-performing inner-city schools. These initiatives led to documented student test score improvements.

Pinellas County, FL - FAST secured commitments from the director of the Early Learning Coalition to provide funding for a full-day of Pre-Kindergarten (Pre-K) for any child whose parents are working and make less than 200% of the poverty level. AS of 2008, over 3,293 low-income four-year-olds in Pinellas County were able to attend Pre-K as a result of this funding. FAST was also able to get the Early Learning Coalition to hire a full-time outreach coordinator. Because of these efforts, Pinellas County ranked second in the state for the percentage of children enrolled in Pre-K programs.

Richmond, VA - The RISC organization played an instrumental role in 2006 to leverage $1 million dollars in public monies to fund the recommendations of its Truancy Task Force. As a result of RISC’s efforts, the truancy rates throughout the school district decreased from 26% to 15% within one year.

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2005
Lexington, KY - Through the BUILD organization’s efforts, Bryan Station High School has implemented Individualized Graduation Plans (IGPs). An IGP is a plan of study that emphasizes academic and career development for students in high school. The plan serves as a tool which helps students set learning goals based on academic and career interests. Not only did Bryan Station implement the plans, but they did it faster than originally committed. BUILD also secured a commitment from the Superintendent and the Principal at Winburn Middle School to hire a Highly Skilled Educator (HSE) for the 2005-2006 academic year. An HSE acts as a coach for teachers and helps them learn better teaching methods.

Louisville, KY - The CLOUT organization’s work to implement the Direct Instruction (DI) reading curriculum in public schools showed enormous progress in 2005. Due to CLOUT’s success in getting DI teaching curriculum implemented, 48 % of Kindergartners at Shelby Elementary (formerly the lowest performing school in Kentucky in the area of reading) entered First Grade in fall 2005 reading at the Second Grade level, and 63% of Mill Creek Elementary Kindergartners will be reading at the Second Grade level. As a result of this success, CLOUT successfully negotiated an agreement with the school district to implement DI in two additional schools beginning in fall 2005.

Tampa, FL - In November 2005, members from the HOPE organization joined a delegation of leaders from the Federation of DART Organizations in Florida at the state capital to advocate for a quality Florida Universal Pre-Kindergarten (UPK) program, meeting with eight key legislators and giving testimony before a joint House/Senate workgroup meeting on UPK. As a result of HOPE’s previous campaign, the Direct Instruction Reading Mastery program is now in all Special Education classes in Hillsborough County Schools and has impacted over 30,000 students in K through 12th grade.

Toledo, OH - Leaders from the TUSA organization found that Toledo Public Schools (TPS) had returned $3 million of the $4 million they received from the No Child Left Behind Act to increase math and reading scores because they only enrolled 16% of eligible students. After pressuring the school system on this issue, the program administrator reported in 2005 that 34% of eligible students were enrolled in the program, the largest participation increase in the United States.

Jacksonville, FL - The ICARE organization was recognized in 2005 for their campaign to implement behavioral training in Jacksonville city schools. During the 2005 school year, in-school suspensions dropped by 22%, equating to 2,500 less suspensions.

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2004
Jacksonville, FL - ICARE worked with the Duval County School Board to see a research-based, pro-active and positive classroom and school-wide behavior strategy implemented in a dozen inner-city schools for the 2002-2003 school year. This strategy has now expanded to all middle and high schools, resulting in 30% reductions in office referrals and out-of-school suspensions. This equates to nearly 11,400 fewer incidents in 2005 as compared to 2004.

Springfield, OH - JAM persuaded Springfield City Schools and Head Start to establish three pilot pre-school classrooms at Emerson Elementary to develop reading readiness skills for 51 low-income children. With the opening of the Beacon Early Childhood Center in fall 2003, the pilot program expanded to serving 250 low-income children and families.

Tampa, FL – HOPE positively impacted the reading success of hundreds of low-income children in Kindergarten thru Third Grade by implementing the Direct Instruction (DI) reading curriculum. HOPE secured $921,000 of state funding for the Hillsborough County School District to implement DI in ten schools and $7.25 million during the 2000 Legislative Session for use of DI in seven Florida School Districts. HOPE also secured the employment of a Minority Teacher Recruiter for the Hillsborough County School District.

Toledo, OH – In 1995, TUSA addressed the low reading skills of Toledo Public School (TPS) students by calling for TPS to implement Direct Instruction (DI). TPS responded by introducing this program as a pilot project in the Old West End Academy. This school is now recognized as the best elementary school in the district with every student in Third Grade passing their state proficiency tests at 100%. More than 90% of its students are reading more than a year above their grade level.

Tampa, FL – HOPE successfully pressed the Hillsborough School District to establish a district-wide Alternative To Out-of-School Suspension (ATOSS) program at a cost of $1 million. This program supervises and protects GPAs of at least 11,000 students each year. HOPE also secured a commitment from the Hillsborough County School District to not suspend children for tardiness.

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Crime and Drug Reform
DART organizations throughout the country have committed to removing the scourge of crime, drugs, and violence from our communities. By addressing our law enforcement, judicial, and correctional systems, DART organizations have intervened to get to the root causes of these problems. This intervention has led to increased pressure on law enforcement to make arrests on “Hot Spots” where drug sales, prostitution, and other criminal activity are known to occur; creation of drug courts to handle nonviolent drug offenders, community policing programs, and alternative sentencing options for drug addicts to get substance abuse treatment. See below for details on some of our most recent victories.

2009
Dayton, OH – LEAD discovered that Montgomery County had no publicly funded medical detox program and that many residents had to travel 1.5 hours to Columbus and elsewhere for treatment. The Montgomery County Drug Court, a specialty court docket that provides solutions to substance abuse and drug-related crime, receives thousands of referrals each year but can only handle 20% of these referrals. Furthermore, LEAD’s research found that for every dollar spent on addiction treatment programs, $4-$7 was saved on drug-related crimes and the community would experience $18 of return in benefits. LEAD therefore decided to take action. In front of 800 Dayton citizens at LEAD’s 2009 Nehemiah Action, County Commissioner Dan Foley committed to create a comprehensive plan aimed at addressing the many holes in the substance abuse treatment system and to present this plan to the County Commission by the end of the year. Following the Nehemiah Action, Commissioner Foley created a task force that includes a seat for LEAD to address this issue.

West Palm Beach, FL – Over the past several years, the overall rate of violent crime in Palm Beach County has been increasing. Those committing violent crimes are mostly between the ages of 15 and 24 and had an average of 12.7 prior arrests. PEACE discovered that a statewide crime prevention program called Neighborhood Accountability Boards (NABs) had a 5-7% recidivism rate compared to an average rate of 11% for all other juvenile prevention programs in Florida. At the PEACE Nehemiah Action in April 2009, State Attorney Michael McAuliffe and his associates committed to present to the board of the Criminal Justice Commission the implementation of NABs in Palm Beach County.

Jacksonville, FL – A trained research committee of 20 ICARE leaders found that nearly 35,000 of the 50,000 incarcerated men and women in the Jacksonville City Jail were arrested each year as a result of drug-related incidents. Without treatment, 24,500 ex-offenders are re-arrested each year, some as many as 14 times. Furthermore, the research committee found that Jacksonville already has a successful model for drug rehabilitation called the Matrix House which annually treats 405 people, or 1% of the need, and has a success rate of reducing recidivism by 83%. ICARE turned out over 1,000 people to their 2009 Nehemiah Action where three members of the City Council agreed to allocate $1.2 million to expand the capacity of the Matrix House from 135 beds to 300 beds. ICARE will be attending budget hearings later in the year to ensure that the City Council follows through on their commitment.

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2008
Columbus, OH - BREAD launched a campaign to expand and strengthen the specialized Drug Court docket in Franklin County. Drug Court is a proven tool to reduce the costs of prosecuting and incarcerating non-violent drug related offenders and reducing the recidivism (re-arrest) rate for these offenders. In 2006, 40% of all felonies were drug or alcohol related. Incarceration costs between $25,000 and $35,000 a year and the recidivism rate for these offenders is 50%. In comparison, Drug Court costs only $4,500 a year and the recidivism rate for Drug Court graduates is only 17%. In front of 2,200 leaders at BREAD’s 2008 Nehemiah Action, Judge Guy Reece, the Administrative Judge of the Court of Common Pleas, committed to champion the expansion of Franklin County’s Drug Court from the current capacity of 50 to a capacity of 300 cases. Judge Reece also committed to work towards implementing national Drug Court standards in Franklin County.

Lansing, MI – ACTION of Greater Lansing received commitments at their 2007 Nehemiah Action from Lansing Police Chief Mark Alley to design an anonymous crime reporting tool, the Hot Spot Card, for those who work or live in the Lansing community. After a brief trial period during winter 2007, the Hot Spot Card was fully implemented on February 1, 2008. Hot Spot Cards are available in ACTION member congregations and a number of Lansing community centers including Cristo Rey and the Allen Neighborhood Center. Cards are received into a P.O. Box, which ACTION of Greater Lansing receives, prints, and distributes to the Lansing Police Department. Currently, they are receiving at least 1 card every week. The Lansing Police Department has taken full ownership of this initiative.

Pinellas County, FL – Since 2008, FAST has been working with the Pinellas County Sheriff, the St. Petersburg Chief of Police, and the Clearwater Chief of Police to investigate and clean up over 60 crime and drug hot spots that have plagued Pinellas County for years. In addition, the County Sheriff is currently working to implement strategies at the County Jail that will assess the job, housing, and substance abuse treatment needs of inmates in order to reduce recidivism. FAST is currently working with the Sheriff to develop a plan for a better intake process and tracking system for the inmates of the jail.

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2007
Lansing, MI - ACTION of Greater Lansing received commitments at the 2007 Nehemiah Action from Dale Copedge, the Ingham County Commission Law Enforcement Committee Chair, to bring a motion to the Law Enforcement Committee to create a task force of key individuals to design and implement a “Jail to Community Reentry Initiative.” The Committee created this task force in the fall of 2007. Thus far, the task force has created a resource list that has been placed into all inmate resource booklets that outlines community resources available to them upon release. The committee has also designed a program that will address the needs of inmates who are the highest repeat offenders. Through this program, their needs are identified at the time of booking and will subsequently be linked to community resources in the few months before their release. Currently, the committee has created the booking needs assessment and is actively working to identify community partners in the Greater Lansing community. The program began in the fall of 2008.

Louisville, KY - At CLOUT’s Nehemiah Action in March 2007, CLOUT members launched the “Stop the Revolving Door” campaign to secure reforms in the criminal justice system. Kentucky Supreme Court Chief Justice Joseph Lambert followed through on his commitment to double the size of the Drug Court program, provide more training for judges on how to use the program, and to maintain the licensed treatment component of the program. Additionally, Kentucky Department of Corrections Commissioner John Rees followed through on his commitment to create a new training program in Addiction Issues for all Probation and Parole staff statewide. Finally, the Louisville Mayor Jerry Abramson followed through on his commitment to establish a new drug treatment program in the local jail.

Jacksonville, FL – With ICARE’s support, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office agreed to expand the Hot Spot Card campaign for anonymous reports of criminal activity by printing and to distribute an additional 9,000 Hot Spot cards in Spanish. Sheriff Rutherford also agreed to support an additional $1 million dollars for the In-Prison Drug Rehabilitation Program.

Lakeland, FL – Over 1,600 people gathered for PEACE’s Nehemiah Action on April 23, 2007. At this meeting, 4 County Commissioners agreed to create a task force that would leverage county resources and create a plan to add an additional 100 beds for inpatient substance abuse treatment and an additional 1,000 slots for outpatient substance abuse treatment. In 2008, the Commissioners agreed to open a new Drug Rehabilitation Center by February 1, 2010.

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2006
Lakeland, FL - The PEACE organization saved taxpayers over $24 million in reduced jail costs in 2006 as people graduated from the newly created drug treatment program in the county jail and beat historical recidivism rates (based on projections using data collected before the creation of the drug treatment program).

Lexington, KY - BUILD discovered in 2006 that the Fayette County Jail did not have a drug treatment program for women. However, it had a drug treatment program for men which reduced the recidivism rate from 60% to 19% each year. Through BUILD’s efforts, former Mayor Teresa Isaac installed $175,000 into the county budget for a women’s drug treatment program at the Fayette County Jail. BUILD has followed up each year since then to ensure that the program remains funded and operating successfully.

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2005
Daytona Beach, FL – FAITH identified and brought to the attention of officials almost 250 spots in Daytona Beach and another 18 spots in Deltona where problems with drugs and crime persisted. In Daytona Beach, FAITH worked with Chief Michael Chitwood to distribute “Hot Spot Postcards” and conducted quarterly meetings with the police department on the status of drugs and crime in the community. FAITH also partnered with New Smyrna Beach’s Chief Pagano on similar projects. Lastly, after a long struggle with the City in 2004, FAITH was successful in getting the Daytona Beach City Commission and Chief of Police to double the size of the City’s street level narcotics unit from six officers and one sergeant to twelve officers and two sergeants.

Lexington, KY - As a result of several meetings with the Chief of Police, the Lexington Police Department began distribution of Hot Spot Cards, which subsequently increased the policing of high drug trafficking areas of the city and numerous arrests. These cards continue to be available in over 50 locations around Lexington.

Springfield, OH - The JAM organization celebrated continued success with its Hot Spot Card campaign. In April 2005, critical information concerning a homicide in the city came in through the use of the cards leading to the arrests and arraignment of the suspects. Over 350 cards have been turned in with a 50% arrest rate.

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2004
Louisville, KY - CLOUT completed its work in 2004 with Police Chief Robert White to develop a strategic plan to reform the culture of the police department through a broad implementation of the Community Oriented Policing (COP) program. The Chief had delayed this process several times until CLOUT held its Nehemiah Action to get the process back on track. Also in 2004, CLOUT worked with the police department to develop a new “Quick Tip” card, which citizens can use to report crime anonymously. This card has been a big success since its introduction in fall 2003 with over 18,000 cards being distributed throughout the Louisville metropolitan area.

Toledo, OH - At the May 2004 Nehemiah Action, TUSA’s members asked Police Chief Mike Navarre to reinstate TUSA's Hot Spot Card Campaign to fight crime. As a result, Chief Navarre met monthly with TUSA representatives to report on his efforts to clean up these hot spots of crime and forwarded housing complaints to the Neighborhoods Department. More than 300 addresses have been assigned, producing dozens of arrests and the cleaning up of more than 150 houses. This campaign is helping build accountability and trust between residents in these neighborhoods and local law enforcement. By 2005, the campaign resulted in the clean-up of 230 high-crime areas.

Daytona Beach – In 2001, FAITH was able to successfully pressure Volusia County to implement a substance abuse program for inmates. As a result, over 1,000 inmates have successfully completed the substance abuse program in the Volusia County Jail System.

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Healthcare Provisions
The rising cost of healthcare is a growing crisis, forcing many families to decide between paying their rent and buying groceries or going to the doctor. Local DART organizations have responded to this issue by focusing on the best common practices of achieving quality and accessible healthcare. Specifically, several DART organizations have created reliable streams of revenue to open new primary healthcare clinics to serve those who cannot afford health insurance. Other organizations have acted on this issue by holding private hospitals accountable for reducing wait times and expanding indigent care programs, opening much needed dental clinics for the uninsured, providing basic healthcare benefits among city employees, and increasing public healthcare provisions for children. See below for details on some of our most recent victories.

2009
Lansing, MI – ACTION of Greater Lansing received commitments at their 2009 Nehemiah Action from Sparrow Regional Hospital, Ingham Regional Hospital, and the Michigan State College of Human Medicine to create an integrated specialty healthcare system for children in the mid-Michigan community. This plan includes an integrated children’s health center which will bring together a variety of needed specialists into the mid-Michigan area, thus allowing specialists to coordinate care and provide easier health access for all children in the community. ACTION continues to research and monitor this issue to ensure that the center addresses the needs of underserved children including factors like the location of the center, proper acceptance of Medicaid and other government insurances, and availability of advocates and translators on-site. The center will fill an enormous gap in adequate care for over 100,000 children of whom 25,000 are currently either uninsured or under-insured.

Lexington, KY – At least 40,000 adults in Lexington lack health insurance. According to local hospitals, the lack of regular, routine primary care was costing the community millions of dollars each year. In April 2008, BUILD turned out 1,100 people to their Nehemiah Action where the Director of Primary Care at the Fayette County Health Department and representatives from local hospitals and nonprofit clinics committed to meeting the primary care need for an additional 6,000 uninsured adults. In 2009, the aforementioned parties created this plan but did not make provisions for the diagnostic and specialty care for the patients in need. In front of 1,300 people at BUILD’s 2009 Nehemiah Action, the parties agreed to include these provisions.

West Palm Beach, FL – At the PEACE Nehemiah Action in 2008, Health Care District (HCD) CEO Dwight Chenette committed to make a significantly greater increase in enrollment in HCD programs than had ever been accomplished to date. He returned to the 2009 Action and reported a 25% increase in enrollment. Currently, enrollment in Coordinated Care and Vita Health has reached nearly 17,000 residents. The increase in enrollees, a direct response to PEACE’s requests, costs approximately $10 million.

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2008
Louisville, KY - CLOUT won a commitment from 13 different state & local health officials to form a task force and develop a pilot project to enroll 6,000 more children in Medicaid & KCHIP (Kentucky Child Health Insurance Program). Over the past year, the task force developed a set of recommendations on how to improve the state’s Medicaid/SCHIP program. In subsequent meetings with the Governor and other state officials, CLOUT leaders and allies from statewide organizations advocating for health reform presented the task force’s recommendations. All of this work culminated with the Governor announcing in September 2008 that he will be implementing most of the recommendations statewide. The goal of the Governor’s plan is to enroll 35,000 more children in Medicaid/KCHIP in the next two years with a state investment of $31 million and federal matching funds of $81 million for a total of $112 million.

Daytona Beach, FL – FAITH worked for nearly a year to improve conditions for mentally ill persons held in the Volusia County Jail. The concerns stemmed from numerous reports of inmates not receiving needed psychotropic medications from the jail psychiatrist, as well as reports about unjust practices of the mental health provider, Prison Health Services (PHS). The County’s contract for a mental health provider was up for renewal in August 2008. Therefore, FAITH held its Nehemiah Action where 1,100 people turned out to demand that the Volusia County Council contract with a local provider for mental healthcare in the jail. As a result, the Volusia County Council agreed and ultimately awarded the contract to the local healthcare provider, ACT/Stewart Marchman, who began mental health services in the County Jail in December.

Charlottesville, VA – As a result of IMPACT’s 2,000 person Nehemiah Action, the Charlottesville Free Clinic, with the support of the Martha Jefferson Hospital and the University of Virginia Medical Center, committed to hire a dentist by March of 2009 to begin to serve the 1,000+ people on local waiting lists for dental care. The Free Clinic fulfilled its commitment eight months ahead of schedule and received $230,000 in funding to hire an entire dental staff along with a full-time dentist. As a result, the waiting list has been reduced to only 200 people and the wait time for emergency visits has been reduced to 1-2 weeks from the original wait of 2-3 years.

Lexington, KY - BUILD received commitments from a number of hospitals, nonprofit clinics, and the Fayette County Health Department to agree to create a plan which will meet the primary care need for an additional 6,000 uninsured adults over 3 years. In 2007, at BUILD’s request, the Fayette County Health Department added staff and hours to see 700 additional patients per month.

Tallahassee, FL – Due to the pressure brought by the TEAM organization, $1.2 million was reinstated for Bond Neighborhood Health Centers and Florida A&M University Pharmacy to provide primary care and limited specialty care to 8,000 uninsured Leon County residents. At the Leon County budget hearing in June 2008, TEAM’s influence achieved a unanimous vote from the County Commissioners to use their monthly automobile allowances to fund mental healthcare at the clinics by increasing the number of social workers.

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2007
Broward County, FL – BOLD Justice obtained a commitment from the Broward Regional Health Planning Council to draft a plan to address unmet dental needs in Broward County. They also secured the support of Broward Health, Memorial Health, the South Florida Dental Association, and Nova Southeastern College of Dental Medicine to work with this task force.

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2006
Daytona Beach, FL - After much pressure from FAITH, Halifax Hospital opened the Express Care Center and the Dunn Avenue Clinic, which have both cut down wait-times for patients from weeks to hours. As a result, thousands of people without healthcare have signed up for the Hospital's indigent care program. In May 2007, FAITH was honored by the Keech Street Clinic for helping Halifax Hospital better serve the indigent population.

Evansville, IN - After a hard fought campaign, CAJE secured the unanimous approval of the Vanderburgh County Council to include a new dental clinic in their 2006 health department budget. The Community Dental Clinic opened its doors on June 26, 2006. In its first six months alone, the clinic saw 1,700 patients, providing almost $300,000 of dental care. Payments are on a sliding fee scale based on income. No one is denied services due to an inability to pay.

Lakeland, FL - As a result of the PEACE organization’s campaign in 2004, 62% of Polk County residents passed a ballot initiative to dedicate at least $35 million each year in sales tax dollars to provide healthcare for the uninsured. After the first year, Polk County served only 2,000 patients and its projections were to serve 12,000 patients each year. Over 1,000 people attended the 2005 PEACE Nehemiah Action where the Director of Community Health and Social Services and three Commissioners committed to begin opening clinics at a rate of one per year for the next five years with the ultimate goal of serving 45,000 patients annually. In 2006, these same individuals renewed their commitments and on November 1, 2007, the first of five indigent Healthcare Centers opened in Lakeland, FL. The next clinic is slated to open in 2009.

Tallahassee, FL - The Board of County Commissioners approved Option 3, 6-1. As a result, primary healthcare survives without any cuts and has an additional budget of $350,000. The commissioners also voted in favor of an additional $100,000 for mental healthcare. Instead of the proposed 8% cut, the primary health-care budget went from $1.2 million to $1.8 million. The Leon County Mental Health Program said none of this would have happened without TEAM’s efforts.

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2005
Columbus, OH – The BREAD organization won a commitment of $1.2 million from Franklin County to expand services at the Columbus Neighborhood Health Centers (CNHC). This allocation means that more than 2,700 people annually will get on-going healthcare from CNHC for at least three years. BREAD also convinced the Columbus City Council to restore more than $343,000 in proposed cuts to the Columbus Neighborhood Health Centers. This translates into 1,500 people who continued to receive prescription drug benefits in 2005 from CNHC.

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2004
Jacksonville, FL - ICARE led local efforts to see that enrollment caps be lifted on the Florida KidCare program for low-income families, resulting in 90,000 children statewide and 4,500 children in North East Florida being offered affordable healthcare. Efforts included passage of a Jacksonville City Council resolution supporting KidCare.

Lakeland, FL - In 2004, the PEACE organization won a stunning victory when the voters passed a half cent sales tax to fund indigent healthcare. The projected $26 million ensured better healthcare for the 120,000 uninsured in the county. Also, PEACE won commitments from two Commissioners to support an initiative that uses 50% of the funds for accessible and affordable healthcare and to hire an independent consultant to create an overall long-term healthcare plan for Polk County, Florida (For more results on this victory, see the 2006 section).

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Affordable Housing
Skyrocketing costs of housing have left the option of home ownership outside the reach of many. DART organizations have vigilantly sought constructive ways of reversing this trend. In particular, DART organizations have won housing trust funds that set aside public investments in affordable housing construction; inclusionary zoning ordinances that ensure new housing construction includes affordable units as well as effective and efficient homeless financing and programs. See below for details on some of our most recent victories.

2009
Pinellas County, FL - In 2006, FAST secured commitments from all seven County Commissioners to support creating an Affordable Housing Trust Fund. At their 2007 Nehemiah Action, each municipality made clear numeric commitments to create a total of 3,091 new units of affordable housing. As of April, 2009, cities throughout Pinellas County reported the creation of 1,023 new units of affordable housing for families making less than $42,000 annually.

Charlottesville, VA - As a result of IMPACT's 1,700 person Nehemiah Action, the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors agreed to direct their housing committee to recommend changes to the comprehensive plan which will lead to an increase of affordable housing units for low-income housing. Also, City Councilors put away at least $1 million in the Affordable Housing Trust Fund with the potential of increasing this amount to $1.4 million by January 2010. Finally, both City and County officials agreed to work together to explore the creation of a regional housing Ombudsman office to serve those seeking affordable rental housing.

Daytona Beach, FL - As housing prices have soared, dreams of owning a new home are out of reach for many Daytona Beach residents including teachers, firefighters, police officers, and a large percentage of hotel and restaurant staff that help make the area famous. FAITH is pushing for the implementation of a Workforce/Affordable Housing ordinance in Daytona Beach and Volusia County that will use an array of incentives to help builders produce more affordable housing. After winning commitments from the Daytona Beach City Commission and the Volusia County Council at FAITH's 2007 Nehemiah Action, these ordinances will be adopted in 2009.

West Palm Beach, FL - Throughout fall 2008, PEACE worked closely with the County's advisory board on affordable housing issues to come up with viable funding recommendations for a locally funded Affordable Housing Trust Fund. The Commission on Affordable Housing recommended utilizing the buyout money from the County's Mandatory Inclusionary Zoning Ordinance and the interest earned on impact fees to fund the Affordable Housing Trust Fund. As a strong statement of support, 175 PEACE leaders attended the January 2009 meeting of the Board of County Commissioners where the Commission on Affordable Housing presented these recommendations. In April 2009, 950 people attended PEACE's Nehemiah Action where Commissioners Koons, Santamaria, and Vana committed to support a resolution that will dedicate these two funding sources to the County's Affordable Housing Trust Fund. PEACE continues to follow up with all Commissioners to ensure passage of this resolution.

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2008
Lexington, KY - In 2008, BUILD secured a commitment from the Mayor of Lexington to create an Affordable Housing Trust Fund which will make millions of dollars available for affordable housing projects in the most vulnerable areas of the Lexington community. BUILD is currently working to ensure that this Fund is fully funded with at least $3-$5 million in dedicated annual revenue, creating hundreds of homes and hundreds of jobs each year.

Louisville, KY - In 2006, the CLOUT organization secured the commitment of Louisville Mayor Abramson to develop a local Affordable Housing Trust Fund. In 2007, Mayor Abramson included an Affordable Housing Trust Fund in his Comprehensive Housing Strategy, as well as $1 million in seed funding. On May 15, 2008, the Louisville Metro Council voted 25-1 to establish the Fund according to the guidelines developed by CLOUT and other allied organizations. Also, CLOUT secured the commitment of the President of the Louisville Metro Council to establish a new committee within the Council to develop the Fund. Finally, CLOUT worked at the state level to gain the passage of state legislation which will provide a secure and ongoing source of millions of dollars per year in funding for the Kentucky Affordable Housing Trust Fund.

Broward County, FL - After turning out 1,600 people to their April Nehemiah Action, BOLD Justice obtained a commitment from Bertha Henry, Broward County Administrator, to convene the City Managers to draft a plan to create a net increase of 4,223 affordable rental units (10% of the need) over the next three years. Furthermore, BOLD Justice obtained commitments from city officials in Ft. Lauderdale and Hollywood to participate in this process. Due to BOLD Justice's pressure on this issue, 990 affordable units have already been built.

Sarasota, FL – On April 10, 2008, SURE held its Nehemiah Action with over 500 people in attendance to press public officials for a renewed commitment to “preserve and expand” the stock of affordable housing. A recent breakthrough saw the earmarking of nearly $14 million for the redevelopment of the county’s largest public housing project to address facilities long neglected by local government and lagging far behind code.

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2007
Columbus, OH - BREAD’s Jubilee Housing Campaign succeeded in getting Columbus and Franklin County to create the Columbus-Franklin County Affordable Housing Trust Fund. In 2007, the Fund helped create over 500 units of housing affordable for people making less than $39,000 a year. After continued pressure from BREAD, in 2006, Franklin County tripled the amount of money (now $3 million annually) that it is investing in the Affordable Housing Trust Fund with a guarantee that $1 million of that new funding will benefit projects built for families at or below 30% of the area median income. In addition, BREAD has worked aggressively to monitor the work of the Fund and has negotiated for more stringent reporting and targeting requirements.In 2008 alone, the fund made loans totaling $5 million to produce 805 new units of affordable housing.

Tallahassee, FL - TEAM pushed for and received commitments from the five City Commissioners to implement a pilot program aimed at providing low-interest loans to rehabilitate rental homes and preserve the affordable housing stock for working families. In June 2007, the Tallahassee City Commission approved a $500,000 match program, providing $1 million in low-interest loans to landlords to rehabilitate their rental units and to rent them to low-income families.

Charlottesville, VA - As a result of IMPACT'S 1,600 person Nehemiah Action, the City of Charlottesville substantially increased their funding for affordable housing from $400,000 to 2.1 million dollars and a joint City-County-University of Virginia Task Force was created to increase housing opportunities for families who earn under $20,000 a year.

Tampa, FL – HOPE persuaded Hillsborough County and the Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court to help reduce homelessness by expediting rent assistance checks to landlords so they receive checks within eleven days instead of several months.

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2006
Pinellas County, FL - FAST secured the creation of an Affordable Housing Trust Fund from the Pinellas County Commission and is funded with $15 million in its first two years. FAST has also secured commitments to add $15 million over the next two years along with an additional $30 million in 2010 (see 2009 section for further details).

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2004
Jacksonville, FL – ICARE advocated for and won a $1.2 million increase in Community Development Block Grant allocation toward affordable housing efforts in Jacksonville.

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Economic Opportunity
The lack of economic opportunity and gainful employment has left many families and communities in a state of constant anxiety. DART organizations have risen to this challenge in various ways including: implementation of comprehensive economic development plans, creation of mortgage and debt counseling, passage of living wage ordinances, strengthened minority hiring policies, and accessible workforce training programs. Also, several DART organizations have worked for the passage of First Source agreements, which require companies receiving tax abatements to ensure disadvantaged workers are considered the “first source” for filling entry-level jobs. See below for more details on some of our most recent victories.

2009
Louisville, KY – In November 2008, CLOUT leaders voted to focus the year’s work on the economic problems plaguing families in the community. After several months of research, CLOUT discovered the following facts about payday lending in Louisville and throughout the state of Kentucky: payday lenders charge up to and sometimes beyond 400% interest APR; families throughout Kentucky lose $131 million annually in fees to payday lenders; 90% of payday lending business is generated by trapped borrowers with five or more loans; 29,000 Louisville households are unbanked; and there are more payday lenders in Jefferson County than the number of McDonalds, Burger Kings, KFC’s, White Castles, and Kroger stores combined. With all this research in mind, CLOUT held its Nehemiah Action with over 1,500 constituents in attendance where they received a commitment from the Governor to work with CLOUT toward a rate cap of 36% on payday lending. They also received a commitment from the Mayor of Louisville and representatives of seven different local banks and credit unions to develop an initiative to reach out to unbanked households in Louisville. CLOUT leaders continue to meet with these officials on a regular basis to follow their progress in fulfilling their commitments and to provide input and expertise on each initiative.

Daytona Beach, FL – FAITH won commitments from the Volusia County Council and the mayors of Daytona Beach, Ormond Beach, Port Orange, and New Smyrna Beach to create local hiring agreements by October 2009. These agreements incentivize training and interviewing locally before looking outside of the community. Also, in response to uncovering the link between a quality workforce and affordable childcare, FAITH successfully sought out commitments from the Volusia County Council to appoint a Workforce Support Coalition to investigate strategies for the community to provide more affordable childcare options for working families.

Broward County, FL – There are currently 54,000 unemployed Broward County residents with some areas of the county having unemployment rates as high as 17%. There are no unemployment offices in Florida and the only way for individuals to apply for unemployment benefits is either over the phone or on the internet, a task that proved to be difficult for countless senior citizens. If a mistake is made in enrollment, a flag is placed on the account and the distribution of benefits is frozen until the error is fixed. The only way to fix errors is to call an overburdened central phone system for the state of Florida. After learning these facts, BOLD Justice decided to take action. BOLD Justice discovered that employees at Broward County’s Work Force One stations could be trained to fix these flags in a matter of minutes. BOLD Justice turned out 1,600 people to their Nehemiah Action where they obtained a commitment from Broward County Commissioner Eggelletion, a member of the board overseeing Work Force One, to ensure that Work Force One employees receive the necessary training to fix these flags. In May, 2009, the employees were trained and are able to provide this vital service.

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2008
Tampa, FL – HOPE’s 2008 Nehemiah Action had over 1,000 community members in attendance where two County Commissioners committed to advocate for funding for Birth Certificates, Identifications and a Voice Mail System for at least 1,000 homeless people so they can successfully secure jobs.

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2007
Tallahassee, FL – There are about 3,000 homeless people living in Tallahassee, half of which are children. Much of the homeless population is invisible to the outside community with many living on friend’s couches or in cars. TEAM worked with the City Commission to implement the Change-For-Change Program which allows Tallahassee utility customers to make a monthly contribution through their utility bill to local organizations that provide resources to the homeless community. The money that is generated through the monthly contributions goes to those organizations so that they can provide services to homeless individuals and families. Some of the funded projects include preventative measures such as financial assistance for emergency housing payments, helping with deposits and other move-in expenses, funding education and job training placement, as well as meeting the basic needs of the homeless population. As of 2008, Change-For-Change raised over $75,000.

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2006
Toledo, OH – Hundreds of people came to TUSA’s Nehemiah Action in order to push for the implementation of a First Source Agreement by the Toledo City Council. A First Source Agreement gives priority to local residents when applying to job vacancies with local businesses as a tool to combat high local unemployment rates. At the time, Toledo’s unemployment rate was 7.1%. On October 31, 2006, the First Source Agreement was passed by the Toledo City Council and requires businesses who receive tax abatements from the city of Toledo to exclusively interview local residents for new positions before opening their search up to residents outside of Toledo. To date, this ordinance has created hundreds of new jobs for Toledo area residents.

Richmond, VA - The RISC organization won commitments from four members of the Richmond City Council to introduce and fight for a Living Wage ordinance for city contract employees. These workers subsequently saw their pay increase from $5.15/hour to $9.50/hour.

Springfield, OH - The JAM organization won passage of a half-cent sales tax generating $3 million for a comprehensive economic development plan. In December, 2006, a Local Hiring Coordinator was hired to connect employers to local job seekers.

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2005
Jacksonville, FL - As a result of ICARE's living wage campaign, Jacksonville city council members were recognized at ICARE’s Nehemiah Action for their participation in a recent unanimous vote to increase funds for the city’s benefits program by $1.2 million, thus extending full-time benefits to an additional 500 city employees.

Springfield, OH - Leaders from the JAM organization obtained commitments from the County Commissioners to have a plan for First Source Hiring in place by July 1, 2005 and operational by September 2005. These commitments hinged on earlier demands made by the organization to implement a half-cent sales tax increase for the purpose of developing a county-wide economic plan. Early in 2005, JAM’s demands were met with $2.3 million earmarked for the county-wide plan and $600,000 specifically earmarked for First Source Hiring.

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Accessible Public Transportation
For many, the lack of accessible transportation limits the ability to do even the most basic things like getting a higher paying job a little further away from home, taking a child to the doctor’s office within a given lunch hour or depositing a check in the bank before closing. DART organizations have surfaced these issues among our members and taken action to ensure quality public transportation is available to all. Some organizations have fought and won expanded night time busing, secured federal funds for use toward public transportation locally, created free, around the clock assistance to seniors in need of transportation, doubled the city’s bus fleet and routes, along with others. See below for details on some of our most recent victories.

2008
Springfield, OH – The JAM organization secured a commitment from the Springfield Transportation Committee to provide transportation for students outside a two-mile radius of Springfield High School for the 2008-2009 school years. Ohio law does not require transportation for high school students.

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2007
Charlottesville, VA – Because of IMPACT’s efforts on public transportation, a new Sunday bus service was implemented in 2007 and has provided over 29,000 trips in its first eight months. Additionally, the bus route to County Social Services and Southwood Mobile Home Park has had over 15,000 trips in the first year.

Lexington, KY - In response to pressure from the BUILD organization, two new bus routes, managed by the local transit authority, opened in 2007 to provide access to higher-paying, dense employment areas of the city.

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2006
Columbus, OH - The Near East Transit Center opened for business in 2006 and now provides a major link to center-city residents to outer-belt jobs. The BREAD organization began pushing for this center in 2000 and got Congresswoman Deborah Pryce to champion funding at the federal level, resulting in a $1 million federal grant. BREAD also convened numerous community meetings with COTA to assist with the design of the center. In addition to expanded transportation, the Transit Center now features 9,617 square feet of retail and office space in what was previously considered a decaying corridor. Now with 40 to 50 employees, the center houses a Central Ohio Transit Authority (COTA) customer service department, the Children's Hospital, and other businesses. The health facility houses doctors, nurses, and other professionals who are specially trained to care for children, and provides many health services, including ongoing primary care for children, sports/school/camp physicals, well child examinations, immunizations, sick visits, and more.

Tallahassee, FL - At TEAM’s 2006 Nehemiah Action, the Star-Metro director, Ronald Garrison, made a commitment to prioritize cross-town bus routes for the 2007 Fiscal Year. TEAM also worked to get five new bus shelters erected in neighborhoods where none previously existed. At present, thirty-five new bus shelters have been erected. Finally, $200,000 has been earmarked in the 2007 budget for satellite transfer stations. In 2009, the City Commission authorized the hiring of the Renaissance Planning Group as a consultant to help decentralize Star-Metro's route structure.

Pinellas County, FL - FAST worked with Mr. Brian Smith, Director of the Metropolitan Planning Organization, to create a new one-number system for senior transportation. This new system, unveiled in March 2006, works with the Area Agency for Aging and allows seniors to speak directly to a trained professional who can help them with their transportation needs. This system benefits over 20,500 seniors in Pinellas County who cannot drive.

Tampa, FL - HOPE successfully encouraged Hillsborough Area Regional Transit (HART) to extend late night bus service until 1AM on nine priority bus routes during the week and two extra hours on weekends at cost of $1.1 million.

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2005
Tallahassee, FL - As a result of the TEAM organization’s efforts, the City of Tallahassee did not reduce the level of funding or services for Dial-A-Ride, a local bus service which provides transportation for the disabled and elderly. This much-needed service had been previously under threat by city officials during budget discussions.

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2004
Miami, FL - The PACT organization’s campaign to improve public transportation gained significant momentum in 2004. Specifically, PACT leaders sought to double the number of buses in the city’s bus fleet at a cost of $3 billion. With varied Nehemiah Actions involving a total of more than 1,000 people, PACT successfully pressured the mayor to include doubling the fleet in his overall transit improvement plan. This was a tremendous reversal as the mayor went from saying “NO” to PACT’s demands in March 2001 to doing everything PACT leaders demanded of him. Later, the voters of Miami-Dade County passed a half-cent sales tax that has financed the doubling of the bus fleet. The People's Transportation Plan will have a projected economic impact of $17 billion on Miami-Dade County over the next 20 years.

Daytona Beach, FL - In 2002, FAITH decided to tackle the issue of nighttime bus service – a service many groups in the community, including Votran (Volusia County Public Transit) itself, had been trying to implement for the previous six years. FAITH, after much research and successful campaigning, secured a commitment from the Volusia County Council to expand the hours of Votran from 7:30PM until midnight. This service began in January of 2003 and Votran reports that ridership is up to nearly 500 riders per night.

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Neighborhood Revitalization
Local DART organizations tend to select issues affecting their entire metropolitan area. But on occasion, our members are called to confront extreme disparities in the life and vitality of certain neighborhoods. See below for details on some of our most recent victories related to neighborhood revitalization.

2009
Columbus, OH – BREAD launched a new campaign at its 2009 Action to focus the attention of City and County officials on vacant and abandoned housing. BREAD called for immediate action on 85 of the “Worst of the Worst” properties and a task force of stakeholders to identify and push for best practices to streamline the process of addressing these houses.

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2008
Toledo, OH – TUSA is determined to reclaim Toledo’s neighborhoods from blight, flight, and decay. In 2008, TUSA pushed for and won a City Ordinance which created a vacant property registry. This registry helps empower the City to hold landlords accountable for proper upkeep of their properties and acts as an important tool to better identify problem areas so that the City can be more proactive in stabilizing the City’s older neighborhoods. Lucas County Commissioner Wozniak agreed to work with TUSA to reduce foreclosures through a foreclosure mediation program. Due to TUSA’s efforts, a Vacant Property Action Council was created in September 2008. This Council engages professionals from local City and County governments as well as the public and private sectors to pool resources to address vacant properties in the community.

Columbus, OH - BREAD’s work as part of the Ohio Coalition for Responsible Lending led to the passage of House Bill 545. This legislation caps the interest rate that payday lenders charge their clients at 28% APR, a decrease of over 360% from what these lenders were previously charging. 1,700 leaders at BREAD’s 2007 Nehemiah Action kicked off this campaign. The organization has also launched a campaign to expand the use of Individual Development Accounts (IDAs) in Franklin County. On May 14, 2008, HB 545 passed with a 29-4 vote on the Senate floor, followed with a successful consensus vote from the Ohio House of Representatives and the Senate. The final stamp of approval was formalized on Monday, June 2, 2008 when Gov. Ted Strickland signed the legislation, thus creating the strongest consumer protection bill in the country.

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2007
Toledo, OH – In May of 2007, over 400 community leaders came together to participate in TUSA's Nehemiah Action to address problems related to the lack of safe and affordable housing. The meeting resulted in commitments from five Toledo City Council members to support and ultimately adopt new legislation to issue civil penalties and higher fines for housing code violations. The money generated from the fines is allocated toward the creation of ten new code inspector positions. Prior to this legislation, housing code violations were considered civil infractions carrying little consequence and bringing about limited change in addressing substandard housing.

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2005
Dayton, OH – Efforts by the LEAD organization led the city to increase the number of dilapidated buildings taken down annually from 75 to 200. To date, the city has torn down over 600 abandoned and dilapidated properties in blighted neighborhoods.

Jacksonville, FL - The ICARE organization secured commitments from code enforcement officials to address a list of thirty run down properties. The officials reported to ICARE members later in the summer of 2005 resulting in full clean-up operations in these areas.

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2004
Jacksonville, FL – On several occasions from 1996 to 2005, ICARE brought to the attention of the Mayor’s Office a host of infrastructure improvement areas identified by ICARE’s membership with over 250 of them significantly addressed including street repairs, removal of abandoned buildings, improved street lighting, drainage improvements, and more. Later on, ICARE’s “The Dirty 30” Campaign resulted in nearly half of the properties either leveled or restored to safe conditions.

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Minority Rights
Racism takes many forms in our cities. Crime, inadequate public education, inaccessible healthcare, lack of affordable housing and others all disproportionately affect minority populations in our country. DART has confronted these injustices by bringing together congregations across economic, religious, and racial lines. Below you will find details on some of our most recent victories that relate specifically to minority rights.

2008
Pinellas County, FL – FAST worked with the Clearwater Chief of Police and Sheriff to make sure that their police departments will not racially profile anyone in the community. They are now accepting anonymous or third-party complaints about any police misconduct. This is an especially big victory for the Hispanic community where people are often afraid to report misconduct they experience.

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2004
Louisville, KY - CLOUT’s bilingual organizer engaged four Hispanic congregations in a listening process that identified two issues of concern to the growing Hispanic population in greater Louisville. In March 2004, these new congregations joined the organization and at CLOUT’s Nehemiah Action pressed local officials on issues of healthcare and housing. Their actions resulted in the hiring of bilingual staff at the Family Health Center and the translation of a booklet on rights and compliant procedures for tenants by the city’s Department of Inspections, Permits and Licenses. Additionally, the owners of three major apartment complexes translated their leases into Spanish.

Miami, FL - The PACT organization helped secure the co-sponsorship of the DREAM Act from the entire Miami-Dade Congressional Delegation and is a leader on the national coalition. The DREAM Act seeks to provide undocumented young people with a conditional path to citizenship in exchange for a mandatory two years in higher education or military service.

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Youth and Elderly Services
Injustice is often hardest felt among the most vulnerable in our communities. Local DART organizations have responded by fighting to protect our youth and aging populations. See below for details on some of our most recent victories on these issues.

2006
Dayton, OH -- LEAD received commitments from two Dayton Commissioners to hire a Youth Coordinator. They also agreed to direct the Youth Coordinator to meet with LEAD within 30 days of being hired and to regularly report back to LEAD on progress being made. The new citywide Youth Coordinator started in May 2006 and is now responsible for compiling and marketing a comprehensive list of out-of-school programs and services for youth; identifying the programs on the list that include learning, conflict resolution and the development of social skills; soliciting input and suggestions from youth about programs they find interesting and appealing; and developing criteria to evaluate the quality of programs.

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2004
Lansing, MI -- In 2003, the Mayor of Lansing was reluctant to expand an adolescent mentoring program, but after continued pressure from the ACTION organization, he agreed to expand a high-quality mentoring program proven to keep kids in school and raise their grades. Due to ACTION’s efforts, this program is now serving twice as many adolescents than before ACTION’s intervention.



Richmond, VA – In 2004, members from the RISC organization received commitments from the City of Richmond’s Vice Mayor and Director of Human Services to establish a mentoring program to reduce youth delinquency.

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Environment
The environment is becoming a great priority for many communities. In today's society, the environment and poverty are more closely linked than ever before. DART organizations have tackled this issue through the commitment to green jobs, which benefit communities both environmentally and economically. See the below section for details on some of our most recent victories on these issues.

2009
Toledo, OH -- In May 2009, TUSA pressed elected officials to dedicate funding towards training Toledo residents with the skills that would prepare them for jobs in new and emerging industries. TUSA learned that the majority of job seekers were over the age of 35 and only 12% had a degree from a college or technical school. Thus it was apparent that local residents needed to be better equipped to compete for jobs in new industries. TUSA secured $1 million of Workforce Investment Dollars for Green Job Training from the County, an extension of the Green Jobs Coordinator Position to oversee the Green Jobs Training Program, and $100,000 from the city to invest in training efforts for Toledo residents.

Dayton, OH -- Montgomery County lost nearly 30,000 or 42% of its manufacturing jobs over the last seven years. Through in-depth research, LEAD discovered that by investing in the new green economy, which includes investments in construction, manufacturing, energy, and other industries, the Dayton community stands to gain hundreds and thousands of jobs. At their 2009 Nehemiah Action, LEAD secured the commitment of County Commissioner Deborah Lieberman to spearhead the creation of a Green Jobs Training Corps that will work to put people on pathways out of poverty and into sustainable careers in the new green economy. Additionally, Commissioner Lieberman committed to invest in new and emerging green business through the Green Business Incubator.

Tallahassee, FL -- In 2008, TEAM received a commitment from the Director of Energy Services for the City of Tallahassee to form a task force to address how to lower the rising cost of city-owned utilities for roughly 14,000 low income families. In 2009, TEAM received a commitment from Talquin Electric to form a round-up program on their utility bills that would provide funds to help with energy assistance for low-income families. TEAM also had the Mayor of the City of Tallahassee sign the Green Jobs pledge, agreeing to take action to bring green jobs to the city and to work directly with the county, who had already signed the pledge.

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