Partnerships - WOCC

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West Oakland Community Coalition (WOCC) Profile Founded in 2001, the West Oakland Community Collaborative (WOCC) consists of eight community-based organizations serving West Oakland. Agencies address a wide range of issues from substance abuse and HIV/AIDS education to job training and economic development. All WOCC members have committed to working together to build the capacity of the local nonprofit organizations and to serve the needs of West Oakland. Mission To enhance, expand, unite, and build the capacity of West Oakland community-based organizations to improve and protect the quality of life, positive living conditions and social, cultural, and economic viability of all West Oakland residents. Goals Our long-term vision is the seamless provision of services to West Oakland residents. This represents a holistic approach to meeting local needs through strategies promoting systematic change and social services aimed at improving the quality of life. Intermediary goals include: Building the capacity of individual community-based organizations in West Oakland. This is accomplished by conducting organizational assessments, providing individual and group technical assistance, facilitating peer knowledge-exchange and mentoring relationships, and cultivating partnerships with local consultants and universities. Building a network of community-based organizations in West Oakland that works together to best meet the needs of West Oakland. Members of this network coordinate services and referrals to local residents, form partnerships to leverage resources, and meet regularly to discuss community needs. Offering comprehensive services to meet the long and short-term needs of West Oakland. Key program areas include economic development, access to affordable housing, safety and crime prevention, and youth development and education. Accomplishments WOCC conducted a very successful Voter Registration Drive in 2004 that increased new voter registration by over 3,500 and increased use of absentee ballots. In 2004, WOCC received a grant from the West Oakland Initiative of the San Francisco Foundation to provide support services to youth and families of the Youth and Family Center at McClymonds High School. Eleven participating agencies graduated from a one-year capacity building program sponsored by The San Francisco Foundation and Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson. Organizational assessments conducted in July 2003 showed that all WOCC members have increased their organizational capacity since program completion in 2001. Forty-two percent of the organizations assessed in 2003 have fully addressed all recommendations in at least one capacity area. In addition to coordinating services and referrals, participating agencies join forces for outreach and events, and have created several strategic alliances that include co-fundraising and service delivery. For example, five agencies within the group have pulled together to raise resources and deliver HIV/AIDS prevention programs. WOCC Organizational Capacity Building Program for Local Nonprofits, $40,000 The San Francisco Foundation partnered in 2000 with Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson's Office to launch an intensive 15-month management training program (MATRIX) for West Oakland's nonprofit community. Groups gathered for monthly sessions to work on issues that included financial systems, management techniques, organizational development, assessment and evaluation, board recruitment and development, and fundraising. In the end, 12 agencies graduated from the program and embarked on a continued learning and collaborative relationship. These 12 organizations formed the WOCC as a means of continuing to work on collective capacity building in key areas such as: financial systems infrastructure board development micro social enterprises collaborative project/program development WOCC provides the Foundation a vehicle for working with agencies to build their organizational capacities while seeking opportunities to cross-connect their service delivery.							WOCC Participating Organizations & Executive Team Participating Organizations Economic Council for West Oakland Revitalization Queen Thurston, Chairperson 510.452.4180 Institute for the Advanced Study for Black Family Life and Culture William Cavil, Director of Community Development 510.836.3245 Jubilee West/United Neighborhood Improvement Association Brother Ayinde, Executive Director 510.839.6776 People’s Community Partnership Federal Credit Union Maeve Elise Brown, Board President 510.267.0450 Regional Technical Training Center Bernard Ashcraft, Executive Director 510.444.6441 SISTER Program Johnnie Lewis, Executive Director 510.836.7938 Women’s Economic Agenda Project (WEAP)-Prescott Resource Center Ethel Long-Scott, Executive Director 510.451.7379 George P. Scotlan Youth And Family Center Richard deJauregui, Executive Director 510.832.4544 The Youth Center provides training and jobs for youth to grow through constructive dynamic opportunities, and contribute to the welfare of the community at large. WOCC Executive Team President Dr. Washington Burns, M.D., Executive Director Prescott-Joseph Center for Community Enhancement Vice President Herb Fajors, Board Member People’s Community Partnership Federal Credit Union Treasurer Ethel Long-Scott, Executive Director Women’s Economic Agenda Project Secretary Johnnie Lewis S.I.S.T.E.R. Program Member-at-Large Bernard Ashcraft, Executive Director Regional Technical Training Center


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