NCJ Number
178740
Date Published
1996
Length
91 pages
Annotation
This report summarizes the second 6 months of operation of the National Funding Collaborative on Violence Prevention (NFCVP) and the lessons learned during the first 12 months of the local collaboratives' planning period.
Abstract
The NFCVP opened a national office, became a 501(c)3 organization, and provided planning grants to 12 communities. It established a board of directors and developed six committees. National office staff learned much about the management of community collaborative efforts as the local planning process proceeded. National staff observed that local collaboratives seemed to fare better when they had strong community foundation involvement. Staffing emerged as an issue from the onset of the planning period. The experience of the national staff also produced important lessons about the launching of a national violence prevention initiative. Effective approaches included using the national collaborative as a model, having unified technical assistance teams, and using hands-on but non-intrusive management. Areas needing improvement included staff planning, low national visibility, and communication with sites. National staff offered technical assistance to all 12 local collaboratives through a national conference, a cluster meeting, telephone conferences, and site visits. Violence prevention issues that emerged as future issues included the place of race and diversity in violence prevention, the role of the media in framing violence issues, and the need to involve youth and the faith and corporate communities in violence prevention activities. The planning year revealed that collaboration building is difficult, that local control works best within a supportive environment with flexible and stated guidelines, and that local communities are willing to determine their own paths on this issue. Figure and appended budget, list of board members, reports, and related materials