Mapping For Justice

Local Grocery Stores: Dominick's

2009-10-26T16:37:00.010-05:00

Last week, I began looking at a series of maps that show many of our local grocery store chains, in relation to poverty, "failing schools," known tutor/mentor programs, and highways.

My most recent blog in the series focused on Whole Foods and showed how, even though they have few stores in high-poverty neighborhoods, they have done a lot to help non profit organizations like tutor/mentor programs.

(Read about Whole Foods' "community citizenship" strategy and how they have supported Tutor/Mentor Connection and Mapping For Justice in our mission.)

But Whole Foods (click on the map above and to the right to expand it) operates in only a few locations, and while they seem pretty good at pushing support (dollars, volunteers, awareness) from customers of relative affluence toward neighborhoods in need, perhaps other chains have store locations that operate in the higher-poverty neighborhoods themselves, and are in positions to generate support from within the community.

I chose to look at the locations of all Dominick's (Safeway) stores, because I see a lot of those around town.

(Click on map to see higher-resolution version)

In keeping with the theme established last week, what is Dominick's strength in helping "cultivate young minds"? (And of course by this I mean, how can they help us in our strategies to create new tutor/mentor program options for students, while improving support for the 240+ existing programs we know about?)

Like Whole Foods, Dominick's has a corporate mission that stresses "responsibility to become involved and to help build better, stronger communities." They mention that, "As part of our ongoing commitment to education, we also support numerous school scholarship funds and youth development foundations, and we sponsor a broad range of after-school and physical education activities."

The timing is right for an alliance among stores who espouse these values and Tutor/Mentor Connection. Many politicians and media leaders in the weeks after the Derrion Albert murder are calling for an increase in mentoring programs. (You haven't forgotten that story already, have you?)

Through support from a corporate office like Dominick's, and with their large army of local store managers, we can work together to make this happen!

Because you'll notice that Dominick's has many stores in Chicago - many more than Whole Foods at least. A handful of them even operate within - or at least in closer proximity - to high-poverty neighborhoods (darker colors on the map represent increasing ranges of families living in poverty). Many of these neighborhoods show high concentrations of "poorly performing schools." Both of these conditions are indicators that there are probably students living there who might need help with homework (tutoring), and potentially with making life decisions that are tied to preparing for college and careers (mentoring).

In other words, Dominick's might be in a slightly better position in some ways than Whole Foods, to generate support (dollars, volunteers, awareness) locally for neighboring programs.

Local store managers are in perfect positions to run fundraisers (like Whole Foods' One Dime at a Time program) that can be donated to local programs or to Tutor/Mentor Connection. (We're all non profits looking for a little rent money.)

Local store managers are also in position to raise awareness via community message kiosks or word of mouth.

Perhaps they can even take the lead from another community center, Hyde Park Hair Salon, and hang the Dominick's map I made for this posting in their local store locations, along with information for shoppers/parents who want to enroll their children... or perhaps volunteer or donate to programs in their shared community.

The sheer number of local stores raises the possibility that individual managers can ally with other Dominick's locations to magnify their efforts as well. The map shows that this can happen either in communities of need, or from stores that serve the relatively affluent periphery.

If Whole Foods was able to raise $5000 from four locations in a few days (see my last blog), just think what Dominick's can do!

What's more exciting is that, unlike Whole Foods, whose corporate offices operate from outside of Illinois, Dominick's has a headquarters in the Western Suburbs, a quick commute from Chicago and the Chicago Public Schools. Certainly they have a more intimate "responsibility to become involved and to help build better, stronger communities" in Chicago.

Political and media leaders are talking about more and better mentoring programs in the fights against local poverty and crime.

Dominick's is in a position of strength to take a lead in making it happen.

To date, Dominick's has donated a $50 gift card to our fundraising and strategy efforts this year. I'm not sure what they have contributed to other mentor-to-career programs, but I'm hopeful that together, we can do even more.

Local Grocery Stores: Whole Foods

2009-10-21T13:07:00.008-05:00

In my posting on Monday, I included a map that showed many of the grocery stores in Chicago, in relation to poverty, "failing schools," known tutor/mentor programs, and highways.

I want to break down that map into the 6 individual maps of individual chains - some national, some local - over the next week or so, and explore ways in which businesses (not just grocer stores) that interact closely with the community can use (or are using) their strengths to support tutoring and mentoring-to-career programs...

(The same "mentoring programs" that politicians are calling for in the wake of the Derrion Albert murder... programs like Cabrini Connections and over 240 known others in the area that show promise in helping kids choose paths toward higher education and career, versus the street, perpetual poverty, and occasionally crime.)

The first chain I chose to extract from my all-inclusive map is Whole Foods:

(Click on map to see higher-resolution version)

While my map shows that Whole Foods only has a handful of Chicago-area locations (none of which are in high-poverty neighborhoods, and none of which operate south of the Loop), Whole Foods still places an emphasis on helping those who deal with the challenges of poverty, embodying what they call "Community Citizenship." From their website:

Community Citizenship: We recognize our responsibility to be active participants in our local communities. We give a minimum of 5% of our profits every year to a wide variety of community and non-profit organizations.

In another page from their corporate site, they give more detail:

...several times a year, our stores hold community giving days (otherwise known as “5% Days”) where five percent of that day’s net sales are donated to a local nonprofit or educational organization. The groups that benefit from these 5% Days are as varied as the communities themselves.

In other words, Whole Foods is able to donate a small portion of their sales, from time to time, to non-profits.

This is huge. It helps keep non profits alive to fight another day. (Because, make no mistake - regardless of what you've heard - non profits have overhead, staffs, and expenses like rent. They rely exclusively on grants and donations.)

But a small fundraiser like this does more than just pay rent. There are other less obvious benefits.

Imagine this: A customer from Lakeview who commutes downtown every day and never has a need (or desire) to go into high-poverty neighborhoods is buying some produce after work. In the past this customer has thought while watching the news and seeing stories related to crime or violence or the Chicago Public Schools, that "If there was only something I can do"...

During checkout, the customer is introduced to Tutor/Mentor Connection, or other student-advocacy causes - programs they likely didn't know about before, but might now want to volunteer to assist a couple hours each week, or make a small donation (of money or talent or supplies).

Moreover, this simple fundraiser just planted a seed. Perhaps this customer is still not ready to take action. But perhaps while watching the news the following week and hearing a politician discuss "mentoring" as a solution to crime, suddenly this concept has a recognizable face and name for this Chicago resident... This is taste-making or "buzz" creation... this helps focus discussion, momentum, and action toward solutions to problems that affect our city and our country.

But again, the most immediate thing a cause-mined business like Whole Foods that operates in more affluent neighborhoods can do to help a non profit like Tutor/Mentor Connection, is to raise money that helps non profits pay rent.

Whether this involves a corporate donation, a percentage of sales, or leading customers who want to make a contribution to the cause, this is the position of strength in the war against poverty for a company like Whole Foods.

And yes, some of Whole Foods' charity HAS come our way.

Whole Foods has sponsored Tutor/Mentor Connection, and has helped us raise over $5000 this year alone, through their One Dime at a Time program, whereby "Whole Foods Market gives 10 cents per bag to customers who re-use their own shopping bags for their purchased groceries. This program reduces our impact on the environment and now supports local non profit groups. Customers will have the choice to accept their cash refund, or donate the cash back to the store’s chosen non profit organization. "

So to summarize: Here we have an example of a store whose main clientele are not from high-poverty regions, yet understand their particular strength in the war on poverty... raising visibility and money that keeps non profits alive.

Come back later this week and I'll focus on a new chain with a new set of strengths. See, while some businesses are in positions to generate corporate or sizable financial support, some have the power to interact locally with parents and community leaders, from locations in the high-poverty neighborhoods themselves.

Nicole Runs Chicago Marathon For Tutoring/Mentoring

2009-10-20T15:19:00.008-05:00

I have to admit... I was somewhat skeptical when Cabrini Connections Research and Networking Coordinator, Nicole, told me over a bunch of Martinis last year (at our Martini Madness Fundraiser event) that she was going to start training to run the Chicago Marathon... with funds raised going to Cabrini Connections and Tutor/Mentor Connection (T/MC).

I mean, it was after a bunch of Martinis after all!

And look how long the route is!

(Click on map to increase size of race route, in relation to poverty, poorly-performing schools, known program locations, and Bank of America (sponsor) Locations.

If you are interested in seeing all Bank of America Locations in the city, and reading about how they and other banks could be using T/MC Strategies to support student programs, check out this blog I wrote almost a year ago.)

But back to Nicole's story!

Sure enough, after sobering up, she stuck to a training regimen all year, raised $2,757 for her favorite charity, and then somehow got up at an ungodly early hour last Saturday, to run 26.2 miles through the streets of Chicago... smashing her goal of 5 hours by over 15 minutes.

How inspiring is that?

Congrats, Nicole!

But get this - she's still not done! Take a peek at her blog this week to learn how you can still contribute to her fundraiser, because as she says, "Even though the race is over, we still need to keep Tutor/Mentor Connection running!"

She also discusses a couple other coming events and contests that will help you get involved with our Tutoring/Mentoring cause for Chicago's students.

Local Grocery Stores

2009-10-19T17:11:00.004-05:00

I wrote a series of blogs earlier this year about the Insurance Industry and its potential role in raising support for tutor/mentor programs.

The map to the right shows all locations of Allstate Insurance Branches in Chicago, in relation to high poverty (darker shaded regions), main highways, and known tutor/mentor program locations. (Click on either of these maps to see larger versions.)

Interestingly, when you look at this new map I made of all known grocery stores in the area (below) - again mapped alongside poverty and tutor/mentor locations - you might recognize a similar pattern... a distribution of store locations that is similar to locations of insurance companies.

Over the next week I will be focusing on individual chains, and (a lot like I did when discussing the insurance industry) I will try to open discussions on ways these stores, their employees, and their customers might each support strategies that increase tutor/mentor program alternatives to the streets for students living in high-poverty/high-crime neighborhoods...

... in concert, of course, with recent calls from political leaders and media leaders who are seeking ways to provide students in high-poverty/high-crime neighborhoods with the mentoring they need to make better life choices.

Take a look at this map above, and come back Wednesday for a look at "Local Grocery Stores: Whole Foods ."

======================

Special thanks to David Ward, a volunteer and GIS professional, who helped me collect the store locations. If you want to help us collect data and/or make maps, please contact me - we're non-profit and always looking for help.

We're also looking for graphic artists, and other tech-related professionals who want to lend a hand to Mapping For Justice.

And our fundraiser to continue Mapping For Justice has raised 70% of our $5000 goal... we've extended it until November 1st, if you want to help us meet our goal, but haven't had a chance yet. Thanks for all your support!

FAQ #1: "How do you get the maps to the kids in need?"

2009-10-15T11:50:00.010-05:00

A friend of mine asked a simple question on Facebook this week that reminded me that sometimes I get caught deep in the complexity of what we are doing with Tutor/Mentor Connections strategies... and forget to summarize or simplify.

He asked a question a lot of people who find this blog are possibly wondering about too. He asked:

"Hi Mike, this sounds quite noble. How do you get the maps to the kids in need?"

This was my response, which I'm re-posting here:

"Hey man... awesome question! Unfortunately a lot of kids probably do not see my maps themselves these days.

This is a relatively new/unique project. My maps serve several huge functions that will ultimately include more distribution of info directly to kids. This is what the maps do... how they work...

I make some maps to try and raise awareness to the need for tutor/mentor programs (by showing poverty, failing schools, crime, and a lack of tutor/mentor centers). These programs are options to the streets for kids who want to participate in our economy, but simply don't have resources or parents who know what it takes to work toward jobs/college.

Some of my maps show businesses, churches, political districts, and other community assets, which when coupled with the strategies my non-profit has been developing for over a decade, has led people in positions of power to form alliances that support/host t/m programs...

Some of my maps show commuter routes as well, in relation to programs, to try and entice volunteers/commuters to get involved with mentoring... kids need to meet caring professional adults... and adults need to meet kids in these neighborhoods. There is a TON of misconception on both sides of this cultural divide.

There have been a few success stories from programs that have generated money or volunteers from my maps... there have been some alliances that have formed to help new programs grow... but to this point there isn't enough exposure to my maps or the service they provide.

Recently politicians are calling for service and mentorship as a way to fight crime/poverty longterm... they need to know about our resources. There are indications this might happen.

So ideally and eventually, as community/political leaders use the maps to form alliances...

... and businesses and individuals are rallying donations to these nonprofits...

... and volunteers are increasing the mentoring ranks/capacity...

... and community centers (like Hyde Park Hair Salon, and Webster Wine Bar) are hanging the maps for their customers to find places to send their kids or volunteer...

... and the media decides to publish the maps when they write/tell about street violence, to show concerned citizens that there are places they can work with to fight poverty or crime, instead of feeling sad/helpless when kids are killing kids night after night...

Well, maybe then kids/parent will start to hear about/use the maps to find programs.

Too few people know we're here yet."

Help us spread the word.

Who Will Tell Government We Have The Tools They Need?!

2009-10-08T12:27:00.028-05:00

My boss, Dan Bassill came by my desk today and exclaimed that "the media is ripe for our maps!"

See, the media is quoting politicians this week, tossing around a word that is near and dear to us at Tutor/Mentor Connection... Everyone seems to be talking about "mentoring" this week, as a part of a proposed solution to crime and poverty, in the wake of the Derrion Albert murder.

This an exciting development for Dan and myself. This is what he's dedicated much of his life to. And this is why he brought me here. My maps frequently show a need for mentoring, are designed to point people to tutor/mentor sites, and hopefully assist tutor/mentor-building strategies for political, business, and media leaders.

The fact that the media and politicians are saying "mentoring" this week is a rare thrill and opportunity.

But personally, I'm a little guarded in my optimism. In theory, this is a can't-miss partnership in the making... a slam dunk... a home run...

I mean, we've already spent the money and built a lot of the infrastructure that would push a big politically-led alliance.

For instance, we have the best tutor/mentor program data available. We can build maps that show high poverty, failing schools, and crime - all in proximity to existing programs (and thus, demonstrate where new programs are needed most). And we have databases full of community resources (churches, businesses, hospitals, etc.) - with strategies for each to employ in their specific capacity for developing tutor/mentor programs.

It's all right there on a silver platter waiting for politicians to run and lead with!

NOW if only someone with access to a large local and national audience would let politicians and other leaders know these resources already exist, and that we've done much of the work for them, before they run off wasting time and spending millions to reinvent the wheel.

Oh wait! Newspapers, radio, T.V., Internet! Of course!... These could each easily be the conduit that links our work with powerful community-minded business and political leaders, to support mentoring strategies that combat crime and violence... and make the world a better place!

So why am I so skeptical (and obviously sarcastic) if the media is talking about this all over the place? This is a good thing, right?

Well... kind of... maybe.

Dan's been doing this for decades and has seen the media and its fickle attention span come and go when it comes to violence. He reminds us in his blog today today - that,

had media been writing these stories since 1992 when Dantrell Davis was killed, and pointing to tutor/mentor programs, and encouraging people beyond poverty to give time, talent, and dollars, we might have more tutor/mentor programs, and fewer incidents of violence. We also might have more kids in college and careers, who were just starting first grade in 1993.

This happens a lot actually. Perhaps the only difference between the Albert murder and the other teen-on-teen violence the media reports and then abandons on a weekly basis (usually failing to point concerned citizens to those of us who are working on solving the problem, and could use the help)... is that this time, there was a camera rolling to feed our thirst for spectacle and supplement an otherwise typical story of crime in the ghetto.

We asked a panel of local media representatives at our last Tutor/Mentor Leadership Conference back in May what their aversion was to discussing potential solutions to crime and violence - a complex topic - part of which, politicians acknowledged this week, includes mentoring.

We were told, after pulling teeth for many uncomfortable minutes, that our tutor/mentor stories are nothing more than "puff pieces," and are off the radar of many journalists' ambitions.

We were told by a different member of the same panel that [paraphrasing] "there just isn't enough space or resources" to dedicate to a discussion of tutor/mentor programs.

In other words, there is a strong liklihood that the media attention we see this week will fade off after everyone has gotten their fill of watching footage of kids killing eachother, like it has in the past, and there will be no sustained effort to continue promoting "mentoring" or any proposed solution to poverty or crime.

So I figured - confronted by these possibilities - that maybe I should just find a way to use existing media resources and technologies to reach out to potential soldiers in this cause myself.

My blog here is a pretty good public forum for this sort of thing. But I've seen others with higher traffic.

For instance, I noticed yesterday, after reading a Tribune article (about how ex-Chicago Public Schools chief Arne Duncan was back in town to discuss violence and the need for mentoring), that there was a public forum at the bottom of the article.

So I added this piece of "puff" to the forum, wasting very few of their resources:

Many have asked here - Where's the solution?! How is a little money thrown to one school gonna fix anything long-term? Duncan talked about "the root of the problem." CNN's Rick Sanchez discussed "the core of the problem" on CNN last week after Albert was murdered too.

What IS the core of the problem? I'm aware it's complex, but I offer an idea that might be a piece of the puzzle.

I work as an educator and a mapmaker/strategist in Chicago's war on poverty.

I address this topic at length on my blog each week: http://mappingforjustice.blogspot.com/

Yes - students' parents need to take an active role, but so can YOU if you're really concerned, through volunteering or donating to programs where people like us roll up their sleeves for a mere hour or so every week, working with students in these high-crime neighborhoods as mentors - helping kids make better life decisions (and meeting the majority of great and non-violent kids who live in fear and loathing of the select few hoodlums that the media typically features)...

With enough adults like us who have the job/college experience to tutor/mentor youth and prepare them for college and career... (or provide donations to programs where this occurs if you have no time)... perhaps these students will survive to be adults with cash in pocket, attracting businesses (and jobs), and revitalizing their neighborhoods.

Step up. As many of you have pointed out, politicians, tax money... historically, this doesn't help, and we're all tired of taxes, regardless of political affiliation. Roll up your sleeves and support programs that act through strength in numbers to SOLVE the problems of poverty and crime.

AND I WAS CENSORED by the moderators at the Tribune, my post never making it to the public discussion.

Someone mentioned that maybe it is because I posted a link. But there are links to YouTube there. So I have no option right now but to conclude it was because of my post's content...

... which is borderline infuriating, considering the moderators allowed a few posts like this:

No amount of emergency funds will tame these animals. Take the money, buy guns and one to each of them, including their mommas... and then let them go at it--until the last one drops. Only then will our streets be safe and clean again. -- AnthonynChicago on October 7, 2009 3:01 PM

Apparently, hatred is acceptable, but discussion of mentor programs (even when accompanied by an article about that exact topic) is taboo?!

Sigh... So what can I do now? Hopefully you are all telling everyone you know about this site. But meantime, I guess I'll just read a few more of today's Tribune articles... in apparent silence:

President Obama's Secretary of Education, Arne Duncan writes:

Somehow many of our young people have lost faith in the future. They've been denied love, support and guidance and have grown up believing that their life is not worth anything -- so no one else's life is worth anything either. It is difficult to love when you have never been shown love. It is difficult to build a positive future when you don't think you will live past the age of 18. That's a problem we cannot solve with money or by pointing fingers at each other or by looking the other way. We must engage directly with children -- starting at the youngest age. We must teach them that violence doesn't solve anything and that respect for others is the foundation of a safe and healthy society. All adults share this responsibility, whether it's teaching those lessons to their own children or someone else's. It starts with parents but it continues with others: teachers, coaches, mentors and friends.

The AP writes:

The Obama administration has asked for $25 million in next year's budget for community-based crime prevention programs, Holder said...Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley said the administration's high-profile involvement isn't "show and tell," but a genuine commitment to address youth violence.

... You know... we can do SO MUCH with just a small chunk of that money...

Maybe I'll just scream as loud as I can from my blog... in hopes Obama, Duncan, or Daley or someone will hear....

PRESIDENT OBAMA AND STAFF!!!

MAYOR DALEY!!!!

WE'RE HERE ALREADY!!!! OPERATING IN YOUR HOME TOWN!!! THE SAME CITY WHERE DERRION ALBERT DIED!!!!!

WE ALREADY HAVE THE INFRASTRUCTURE, STRATEGIES, AND PROGRAMS!!!!

LET'S COLLABORATE!!!!

(I still have a little hope.)

The Core of the Problem: RIP Derrion Albert

2009-09-28T15:54:00.028-05:00

Well, Chicago's youth made national news again this week. But not in a very positive way, I'm afraid.

I'm sure you've all seen the amateur footage taken in the savage and fatal beating of Fenger High School honors student Derrion Albert. If not, just Google it and easily find a network near you that is happy to indulge you with gruesome footage of kids killing kids.

As we've discussed in the past, this week is one of those weeks where "teen violence" has risen to an editorial level, and everyone is temporarily asking, "why is this happening?" This week it took the national stage...

Monday afternoon, I caught CNN talking head Rick Sanchez interviewing Chicago Police official Ronald Holt. (Ronald Holt's child was killed in random street violence two years ago, so he brings an intimate knowledge of the law and Chicago's street violence.)

Here's the full transcript.

During the interview, Sanchez asked Holt the big philosophical question that everyone - and certainly we here at Tutor/Mentor Connection - struggle with:

"Why does this happen? Why are we so damn violent? And especially children, 15, 16, 17, 18 years old, what would cause them to have this much rage, this much hate?"

Holt responded that to understand the anger, we need to first address "the core of the problem," explaining that, "A dysfunctional parent can only develop a -- a dysfunctional child within a dysfunctional home... And you have to find a cure for that parent, who doesn't -- who lacks the life lesson skills and management to pass along to those children."

Holt further explained...

..."your first known teacher is your parent or grandparent... Are they equipped with life lesson skills to pass on to those children to raise them properly? ... you have to go back to the core of the problem, and you have to treat it there. Some of these children... They're not nurtured at home. They are miseducated. They get out here in the streets. They don't have a ... positive male role model in their home or in their lives..."

Sanchez challenged this, in classic nature vs. nurture fashion, proclaiming that, "something's got to be real wrong with a person who at that moment continues to do something like that and almost revel in it as I saw in that videotape that goes beyond parenting and social skills, does it not?"

Holt tried to argue that it's not that simple, stating that, "it has to start somewhere. And that's the nucleus of it..."

Holt then shared his belief that there is indeed "an unsalvageable criminal element out there that has made crime and violence a daily reality for a lot of law-abiding citizens in our country."

... and with that came the end of the conversation. Sanchez had clearly found the juicy bait he needed to feed his Twitter audience (that's "his thing" - he indulges the faceless Twitter crowd, broadcasting the mass's opinions on hot topics). He cut Holt off abruptly...

"I'm going to stop you with that word. 'Unsalvageable' is what you just said. 'Unsalvageable.'"

He continued, "And you know what? I think you're right. I agree with you. I think there are people out there who could possibly very well be unsalvageable. And maybe we as a society need to start treating them as if they are just that, unsalvageable."

(He later wondered, while sorting through the Twitter feeding frenzy he ignited - about whether Americans living god-knows-where believe kids who are at-risk are "unsalvagable" - whether, "Some people then might be dispensable?" ... Yikes!)

Well, assuming most people reading this blog buy into the notion that kids living in poverty are "salvagable" (and certainly not "dispensable")... and that some people prefer to get their knowledge from real academia-reviewed and statistically-sound sources, versus random Twitter messages and talking heads, please check out the book American Apartheid, by Douglas Massey and Nancy A. Denton.

I've mentioned this book on this blog in the past, but Chapter 6 seemed important for this discussion in particular. The chapter, "The Perpetuation of the Underclass," goes into great detail - rooted in statistics and history - about how opportunity and social mobility in hyper-segregated high-poverty neighborhoods have been systematically curtailed throughout history - by politicians and others (the book uses Chicago as a case study)... the book shows how generation after generation, families in these neighborhoods have faced unique barriers to resources such as jobs and education... and that their political and spatial isolation, combined with generations of hopelessness and frustration have created not only anger, but - as the author argues - alternative value systems that occasionally get the kids in trouble.

Simply put, to end this cycle - and ultimately curve (if not end altogether) poverty and violence, we need to address the "core of the problem" and help kids make better life choices in many cases. We need to help them place better value on themselves and their futures. We need to equip them with the tools to succeed if they choose to pursue career or educational dreams.

Tutoring and Mentoring Programs would clearly fit into any comprehensive solution that acknowledges this definition of "the core of the problem."

The problem is, we're only talking in sound bytes and tweets these days. Spend some time looking at the maps on this site and you'll see there are very few tutor/mentor programs in most neighborhoods. Read some of the stuff Dan Bassill posts on his blog (he's the president of Tutor/Mentor Connection, a 30-year veteran of such work, and my personal boss and mentor) and you'll see diagrams that try to help make sense of this complex problem, requiring complex thinking, and involvement at many places, at the same time, and for many years, to get to the core of the problem.

Unless people like us are willing to spend time learning (which still means 'reading'!)... and reflecting... not much will change. We can't let the "problem" be spoon fed to us!

Unless we then look for ways every day where we can use the available time and talent and money needed to build the systems, and link the world to systems that can address poverty and crime, not much can change.

If you just found this blog, browse my tags at the right there to find maps/stories that show how Tutor/Mentor Programs and our maps work, toward addressing this core problem. You'll also find links to others who are thinking about this topic (not just me and Dan and Tutor/Mentor Connection).

Meantime, it is my hope that Officer Holt is doing something consistent to raise visibility and support among those in his ranks... and with his access to media muscle... to support programs and leaders that work in concert with tutoring/mentoring.

And we hope you stand up and do something. Buy American Apartheid and give it a read.

Challenge the community leaders you know to support new and existing programs.

Donate to help Tutor/Mentor Connection and Mapping For Justice continue their work.

Use my maps or the online program locator we built to find a program near you, and enlist to help fight the core of the problem.

Map-A-Thon Week 4 - Pictures Telling The Story

2009-09-19T11:27:00.007-05:00

Well the first few weeks of our fundraiser have gone pretty well... a lot of people really stepped up for Mapping For Justice. We're currently 1/3 of the way there, and while your generocity has been so appreciated, we need to find new donations to meet our goal of $5000 by October 15.

A few thoughts as we move into the second month of the fundraiser:

1. While greatly appreciated, you don't have to donate $25, $50, or the whole $5000... ANYTHING helps. If $5 is all you have to give to tutor/mentor programs and this mapping project, it will help move us toward our goal and be extremely appreciated.

2. Please continue to spread the word to friends in your network who have an interest in fighting poverty, and an interest in student advocacy. Have them contact me personally, or send them to this blog, via your personal social networks (like facebook)... this is something that is free and easy, and is extremely helpful!

3. Realizing that pictures might help tell the story of "How Do These Maps Help?"... here is a fun little sequence of pictures for you:

These three students work with me Tuesday Nights in "Tech Club" at Cabrini Connections Tutor/Mentor program. I volunteer, off the clock, and have gotten to know each of them really well. See if you can guess which 9th grader here is an aspiring rock star, which is writing a fantasy novel, and which has created a video game? They also continue to learn mapping skills, and with this skill, might one day advocate on their own behalf, due to the Mapping For Justice connection, which you can help support by contributing what you can to the fundraiser.

The maps you help support show where High Poverty + Low-Performing Schools = Need for Tutoring/Mentoring.

The news tells us of violence everyday, further stigmatizing neighborhoods where aforementioned novelists, musicians, game creators, and future community advocates live. The maps you help support tell "the rest of the story": It's a story of where community leadership needs to provide more mentor-to-career support for capable kids who might otherwise turn to the street for guidance.

Our maps help political and business leadership visualize the lack of tutoring/mentoring options for youth, and serve as a starting point for the formation of strategies and alliances that work to SOLVE THE PROBLEMS related to crime, poverty, and workforece development, not simply expose it. You might not have to dollars these guys do, but every little bit helps us continue to provide supporting maps.

You can also help us continue to produce maps and strategies that provide community assets, like faith-based groups, with new ways to help the poor and needy - either in their congregation, or in neighboring communities.

The maps you support are gaining the attention and recognition of important leaders. Don't let this momentum die! Just recently, this map was hung in President Obama's barbershop, and currently generates discussion, action, and heightened community awareness and involvement... pointing Hyde Park's citizens and community leadership (and maybe the President himself when he needs a trim) to existing tutor/mentor programs that need support through volunteers, student recruitment, supplies/talent, and funding.

But ultimately, it's YOU that can make a difference - big or small... our maps show YOU how you can find a program that helps students in Chicago near your home or communter stop... these students are YOUR future employees and neighbors... future participants in the Democratic process... future leaders with the innovative and creative minds needed to help think outside the box and address the national and local issues that affect us all.

Help us keep making maps to draw support and continue rallying attention to these important programs.

Donate to our fundraiser today... $5, $10, $25... whatever you can afford to offer. Remember, it's tax deductible - we're a non-profit organization!

Special Thanks To Those Who’ve Stepped Up For Mapping For Justice

2009-09-09T16:45:00.011-05:00

We’ve been running a Map-A-Thon to raise $5000 before October 15, in order to continue Mapping For Justice.

(The blog I wrote last week speaks as simply as possible to why this fundraiser is essential.)

This past week, CBS dropped by to interview Dan Bassill, president of Tutor/Mentor Connection. Dan says a few words about why "we're broke," but they also do something that is far too uncommon... they use their media reach to focus on why tutor/mentor programs like Cabrini Connections (one of 140+ programs I feature in my maps) are vital. Watch it to meet a few of the kids and learn from CBS coorespondants and the kids themselves why this is a program that needs your support.

I want to thank those who have taken the time to talk with me since the fundraiser started... those who have looked into why these programs are important... and those who have stepped to the plate and given what you can afford to give, in our effort to raise $5k. This means a lot to us in our fight against poverty and for students, and I’ve been making an effort to thank each of you personally. (“Bob” and “Shoba”… shoot me an email… not sure who you are and want to thank you!)

At the time of this posting, we’re only about 1/4 of the way there. We need more help!

I’d also like to bring attention to some of the people who have found creative ways to help.

Thanks again to CBS for taking time to give you an inside look at a tutor/mentor program, but again, this treatment from a selective media is rare. We need to spread the word the old fashioned way - by joining hands and promoting important causes with grass-roots techniques.

Even if you’re out of work or dirt poor or whatever, if this is a cause that interests you, you can help spread the word, create a discourse, and mobilize action.

How?

The Dakota Inn in Alsip, IL, for instance (map of Alsip coming soon!), took a night and promoted a bean-bag tournament, with the procedes going to Mapping For Justice. The customers of this biker bar rode in on their Harleys, entered the tournament, had fun, and learned about what we do.

The process toward change can’t begin without those who want to help knowing where to turn. The beanbag tourney guided locals to the maps. The maps guide them to programs. This is the way this country worked for almost 200 years prior to CBS News and text messaging. This is grass roots organizing at a public place.

Thanks to Debbie and Angele at Dakota Inn for creating a community meeting on behalf of community issues!

But we’re in the digital age, love it or not, and most of us spend more time in fromt of computers and TVs than we do at bars and town halls. Gregg Ott used his personal blog to spread the word to his network. This is something you can do for free. You all have Facebook and/or blogs, right?... Social Networking on behalf of the community... Cross-promoting your causes with ours... Strength in numbers! Thanks, Gregg!

Thanks again to everyone who has taken the time to learn about what we do, use their social networks to advocate on behalf of our cause, and help us meet our fundraising goals.

Please contact me with any questions...

And please donate and spread the word today, so that we can continue Mapping For Justice!

We're only 1/4 of the way there!

Map-A-Thon Week 2 - A New Look At The Issues

2009-08-25T16:11:00.005-05:00

I've been working with volunteer marketing people to determine why people have a hard time digesting our mapping project, and its importance TO YOU (not just the students).

When I talk face to face with people, and am given an opportunity to discuss case studies - students, programs, and volunteers whose lives have been changed through tutoring/mentoring, the audience is always enthused and impressed. Yet when I blog or network online, the message is seemingly lost.

So let me take another stab at it, using cleaner and doctored language, courtesy of an alliance between Mapping For Justice and a marketing volunteer (did I mention your individual talents can help students, as much as your time and money?).

Please read, and consider a donation to help us meet our goal of $5000 this quarter, to keep this community service operational:

THE ISSUE

Students raised in high-poverty, high-crime, and underprivileged neighborhoods typically lack access to non-school resources that aid their development and help put them on a path toward college and career.

Tutor/Mentors programs pair volunteer mentors from the professional ranks with capable students who aspire to reach their potential.

The problem is that potential volunteers, students, parents, and community leaders/donors who want to support this solution-based approach to poverty and violence likely don’t know where to look to find programs to help in their communities or beyond.

THE SOLUTION

Mapping For Justice maps the locations and prevalence of tutor/mentor programs in relation to factors such as poverty level, “failing” schools, churches, hospitals, banks, drugstores – and other businesses and organizations.

OUR MAPS AND THIS BLOG CONTINUE TO:

Heighten community awareness and involvement, pointing citizens and community leadership to existing tutor/mentor programs.

Direct potential volunteers and donors to programs, to ensure program growth and longevity for students.

Draw attention to the need for new non-school tutor/mentor programs where none exist, but where poverty is high and students are struggling in poorly-performing schools.

Supplement crime news stories with maps to guide concerned citizens to programs who work to solve crime, not just expose it.

Help build alliances among businesses, politicians, faith groups, and other leaders who serve communities, by providing maps that help potential partners find each other.

Guide tutor/mentor advocates and supporting alliances, through associated blog stories, to strategy documents that provide templates for action.

Encourage accountability among community-minded organizations and individuals who seek to contribute to their communities in sustainable ways, by making their student advocacy efforts quicker and easier.

THE CHALLENGE

Mapping For Justice maintains its infrastructure – including data collection/maintenance, map production, an online presence (map gallery, this blog, and real-time Google-based interactive map), and a marketing effort – all on a $50,000 grant received more than a year ago -- all with a staff of one.

This money is gone. Mapping For Justice needs financial help to sustain these innovative tools that bring communities closer together and help develop our workforce.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Please help up meet & exceed our goal of raising $5,000 to continue map development.

Additionally, If you know of any benefactors looking for a philanthropic tax write off, with an interest in the wars on poverty and crime please guide them our way. We ultimately need a sustainable long-term cash flow to work for more students in the future.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

http://www.giveforward.org/mappingforjustice/ OR http://tutormentorprogramlocator.net/

MAP-A-THON - Your Very Small Contribution to Maintain a Priceless Community Service

2009-08-20T10:56:00.011-05:00

Unfortunately, it's come to this. I get the feeling when I talk to people in these hard economic times about the dire financial situation faced by the non profit where I work, people chalk it up to just another charity whining for more hand outs.

I wish it wasn't worse than that.

I can't emphasize enough how close our mapping service is to disappearing... and if you've never taken the time to read through what it is we do, and why we are so important to families and students in Chicagoland, please make this the first time you've taken a hard look and read all the way through.

We are running a Map-A-Thon. We need just a couple hundred people to donate $25 or thereabouts, to keep our heads above water for the rest of the year.

http://www.giveforward.org/mappingforjustice/

Your $25 will help us continue to fight against crime and poverty… and provide invaluable strategic resources to students, families, volunteers community leadership, and - I believe - you and me.

Let me explain quickly why this important mapping effort needs to continue, and why its existance is in jeopardy.

Our maps directly support the growth of new and existing tutor/mentor programs… programs that pair professional volunteers with impoverished students who want to move away from a path that leads to desperation and hopelessness, and "catch up" to those on a path to a bright future that includes college and productive careers.

In the end, through tutoring and mentoring, students are equipped with life skills and guidance.

But the volunteers grow spiritually and emotionally as well, as they get to know kids they otherwise only hear about via associations with negative news, but find - once they meet - that these students are largely capable and often brilliant. The students often just need additional tutoring and mentoring.

The problem though, is that often no one knows these programs exist - volunteers, students, parents, and neighboring leaders who want to work toward solutions to poverty and violence don't know where to look to find programs like these - programs that work on shoestring non-profit budgets with overwhelmed staffs and little to no marketing.

We maintain a directory/database, and map locations of programs, in spatial relation to poverty and failing schools and community/business resources.

With one of our maps in hand, potential allies can find each other and work to increase support for new programs where none exist (and our maps show this need, and these locations, clearly).

Our maps also show neighboring community leaders where they can direct potential volunteers and much needed dollars, to ensure the growth of programs.

And therein lies our second BIGGER problem:

Our customers - the programs themselves - have no money to support our efforts!

We built and maintain our infrastructure (which includes a map gallery, strategy documents, this blog, and a real-time interactive map on Google technologies) - ALL on a $50,000 grant we received almost two years ago.

The money is gone.

As we begin to finally get the message out (we were featured on WLUW radio and in the June 2009 issue of Youth Today recently, and President Obama's Barbershop and Webster Wine Bar display our maps to customers at their locations)... as we finally begin to make a difference (several program representatives at a May Conference on Tutoring/Mentoring told us they find supporters through our maps)... the money has run out.

The economy is not getting better. There is more violence and frustration than ever.

More than ever, our efforts need to continue to help communities come together in tough times to guide kids off streets and onto productive paths.

This Map-A-Thon is hoping to raise the money we need to keep the effort going for a few more months. If you have any money to help us maintain our goal, please consider helping us meet our goal of $5000. Just a few dollars will help toward this goal.

(Of course, if you know benefactors looking for a philanthropic tax write off, with an interest in the wars on poverty and crime... in the sad phenomenon of "failing schools" ... in children and education... please guide them out way. We ultimately need a sustainable long-term cash flow to work for students into the future... and to not have to bother you with fundraisers.)

This is a community effort, and more than ever, we need your help to keep working to help the community come together through maps.

Support from Obama's Barber, a Chicago Bear, and WLUW... Join Our Team!

2009-07-27T17:19:00.011-05:00

Wow what a month. Seems everyone is rallying for Tutoring/Mentoring.

We still need YOUR support though... Please review what we have going on below and consider either a small contribution yourself... or pass the word to somebody who has the means to keep us mapping for justice into 2010 and beyond. Our goal is $50,000. Every bit helps.

So, what has happened this month?

Well, last week, Dan and I visited Hyde Park Hair Salon where President Obama goes to get his hair cut! We hung the following map on the wall, which the barber will use when talking with his customers:

If you click on the map, it will expand to show the location of the barbershop, in relation to all known tutor/mentor programs, high-poverty neighborhoods (with struggling schools), and many of the area's businesses and community resources. The barber will use this to drum up conversation, and ultimately tutor/mentor support for local students.

This is the sort of partnership we are looking for. We don't live in Hyde Park. We need local business leaders like the barbershop to communicate the advantages of tutoring/mentoring to parents, potential volunteers, and businesses in EVERY neighborhood.

My maps help facilitate this process. We need your help to continue building these partnerships. Contact me to learn more.

We also hosted a successful Golf Benefit, which was attended by several community leaders, and some NFL Players, including Bears linebacker Nick Roach, shown in this photo with Cabrini Connections eighth grader, Savon.

Savon is an amazingly talented Cabrini Connections eighth grader who attends Tuesday night Tech Club (where I log my volunteer hour each week). At Tech Club, Savon works with me and professional graphic designer (And volunteer) Christine Kochevar. He is currently learning marketable Photoshop skills and will soon be making maps himself.

Cabrini Connections Administrative Coordinator, EL Da' Sheon Nix (former Northwestern wide receiver himself) wrote a blog this week that features Savon's reflection on the event and what Cabrini Connection and Tutor/Mentor Connection (T/MC) means to Savon.

(Interestingly, Nick Roach and President Obama are connected indirectly to T/MC outside of the hair salon and the golf benefit. Check out Dan's blog this week: "NFL Players Association Joins President Obama in Call To Service." Therein, he references Roach, Bears lineman Orlando Pace, and other athletes... and explores how they and YOU can help "put a tutor/mentor team on the field." )

One final exciting thing to report at the end of the month. The media finally took an interest in my story! Hopefully this is just the beginning! Mike Stephen at Outside the Loop RADIO on WLUW 88.7fm, podcast an interview that told my story as mapmaker, volunteer, and indie rock musician.

Again, it's podcast, so please download it and listen to it if you haven't.

In the interview, I make a call to action to all artists and musicians who have a dream to help your community, but are too afraid to make the commitment... or not sure how. I hope it inspires you to take action.

Contact me to learn how to get involved, to learn more about my maps or music (and how your skills and talents can combine to help kids through tutoring/mentoring.)

And please forward this update to anyone with an interest in education, workforce development, the wars on crime/poverty... anyone can help us meet our goal of $50,000, one small donation at a time.

Breaking News! Maps to Help You Fight Crime and Poverty!

2009-07-16T14:47:00.008-05:00

I woke up today to "Breaking News" that proclaimed at least 8 people had been shot overnight in Chicago. As usual, I read names of kids who died, and recognized addresses from some of the same high-crime neighborhoods I've mapped before. I came into the office and mapped the locations, as I always do, to try and get a picture of where non-school tutoring/mentoring programs are offering guidance to youth, in proximity to the violence last night and low-performing schools.

Please click on the map to see a larger, higher-resolution, and more detailed view.

When you look at the map I made, try to locate the green stars. These are non-school tutoring/mentoring facilities. If you go to our interactive, online mapping tool, you can click on the stars and get contact information that will tell you details and contact information about each program.

If you use our map tools - either my Map Gallery or the Interactive Asset Map - try to do some quick and dirty math. Try to think about how many kids are packed into a typical struggling Chicago Public School. Assume that each of the green stars/programs has a limited capacity - limited by a lack of funding and a need for volunteers... and well, x > y in most cases where there is high-poverty and inevitable crime.

(See this discussion for much more detail as to "where and why tutor/mentor programs are needed most.")

Then ask yourself if you think it's a good idea to mentor youth who are living with challenges that come from low school performance, poverty, and survival... challenges that, without guidance can turn to anger and violence. Like it did last night.

Here's the great thing if you do think it sounds logical to tutor and mentor kids who need a little extra guidance...

You can help!

How?

* For starters, you can use your social network. Most in your network might not yet know there are opportunities in tutoring/mentoring to meet and coach great kids with tons of potential but uncertain futures...

You can exponentially raise awareness of the problem and educate/mobilize an army of those with the time to volunteer an hour or so a week.

* But not everyone will have an hour to consistently spare... perhaps instead they have personal means or a charitable connection that would welcome the tax write-off that comes from donating to a non-profit... thus ensuring that those with the time to volunteer have places to do it.

* And hey - don't let me stop YOU from getting involved yourself!

I think both you and your network should join me here at this blog to consistently discuss The Rest Of The Story... and other tidbits related to maps... and education, community, social justice, and problem solvers like Tutor/Mentor Connection. Please bookmark my blog and come back for new maps and discussions.

* I also know YOU would love the experience of volunteering with a kid you'd otherwise never have the chance to meet... and very possibly could change your life as much as you change his/hers.

Please contact us to volunteer... or donate at http://www.tutormentorexchange.net/donate.

* One last - but hugely important thing you should do:

Our growing mapping capacity (as evidenced today by my ability to turn out a map within hours of a request - for discussion of the news in this case... but just as easily for those whose strategies/partnerships need a map of locate assets, resources, or programs) is not-for-profit, and supported by benefactors and donations.

If you know someone with a charitable interest in causes that combine social justice, kids, education, workforce development, and the war on poverty... we need their help to continue our efforts into 2010 and beyond. Please pass the message to any potential benefactors who can help us reach our $50,000 goal. Have them contact me or http://www.tutormentorexchange.net/donate for details.

Did I mention by the way that the last generous $50,000 grant we received bought the interactive, online mapping tool that will help you find a place to volunteer when you get done reading this? Chris Warren even created a tutorial called Anyone Can Make Maps (That Means You!) to get you started...

Check it out...

And again, please lean on your network... Here's an article of interest: 10 Ways to Support Charity Through Social Media.

Unfortunately most people rely on "the news" for community information. And unfortunately if you're relying on Breaking News, all your getting is half the story - the problem... day after day... negative news.

Social networking allows you to fill in the Rest of the Story... that you and your network have the ability to help solve those problems.

New Map Gallery Launched! A One Stop Shop For Tutor/Mentor Support

2009-07-08T15:11:00.006-05:00

Apologies for not posting in a couple weeks, but rest assured I've had my sleeves rolled up, creating an all-inclusive Map Gallery... a one-stop shop for all the maps I've produced, with links to each map's associated Mapping For Justice blog story.

Here's a quick screen capture of the Map Gallery:

Notice that the left side features links to everything we do with maps: How-to documents and interactive animations, the interactive Google maps, the Tutor/Mentor Institute's strategy documents, the Program Locator. There is also a link to the awesome maps other volunteers made prior to my arrival at Tutor/Mentor Connection in 2008.

But the highlight is of course, the new gallery of all our maps:

Each of the 7 map categories in the Map Gallery have text that explains that category's significance in the overall mission of T/MC and its strategic use of maps to support tutoring/mentoring programs. If you read from top to bottom, you'll get a clearer sense of why maps are so important in our mission.

Click on a particular map's thumbnail, and the full map will load in high resolution:

At the bottom of each expanded map, there is a blurb from that map's associated blog (posted on Mapping For Justice)... with links to the blog if you want to read the full story.

In a nutshell, everything you need to find and then support a program is here, whether you are a media, political, business, spiritual, or other community leader... or perhaps you are looking to start a program where the maps show there is a need... or maybe you're just a volunteer looking for a program near your home or commuter route...

No organized and successful journey starts without a good map!

A few important words before you go and look through the maps:

1. Thank you for your support over the past year and a half while our mapping resources were being developed. These maps, the interactive project, and this gallery wouldn't exist without a generous $50,000 act of charity from an unknown benefactor.

We really need to find a new source of income to continue this not-for-profit map work... for the improvement of our workforce and economy, and for the welfare of our children and communities.

If you know any potential benefactors, with an interest in community and workforce development... education... social justice... or simply "maps," please forward this to anyone with the capacity to help us continue our work.

2. I will be continuing to add new maps weekly, so remember to bookmark http://www.tutormentorprogramlocator.net/mapgallery.html and come back each week!

3. And last thing - realizing there are still probably a few issues here and there with the Map Gallery, since I just launched it... I invite you to take a look around and give me feedback as I tweak and improve the design... is it user-friendly? Are there things you'd like to see added or modified? What else do you like or not like?

Thank as always for returning to this site, and for your continued support for tutoring/mentor programs!

Chicago's First Ward - Join Our Pact!

2009-06-04T17:25:00.017-05:00

In previous articles I’ve shown maps that illustrate the relationship between poverty and poorly performing schools. I’ve illustrated how business and political leaders can use these maps to build leadership strategies that make more and better tutor/mentor programs available in specific parts of the city, and in all parts of the city .

Here’s a new set of maps, illustrating our capacity to map the 50 Aldermanic Wards of Chicago, which then can be used by each alderman to mobilize resources to build tutor/mentor programs in areas where they are needed (or to help existing tutor/mentor programs get the dollars and volunteers needed to survive this depression, and help volunteers stay connected to kids).

When you look at my maps, try to locate clusters of failing schools and poverty where students likely need additional tutoring and mentoring. Once you locate pockets where there are likely to be students in need of tutoring and mentoring, use the maps to locate organizations in the neighborhood that could either host new tutor/mentor programs, or help mobilize volunteers, public attention and donors, for existing tutor/mentor programs in the area.

(click on each map for a larger view)

This map above shows faith groups in the First Ward, currently represented by Alderman Manny Flores. Perhaps one of the local churches here can host a new program.

Because it's immediately clear, looking at this map, that there is a need. In the First Ward there are only THREE known tutoring and/or mentoring programs that are helping guide resident kids away from hopelessness and frustration and toward becoming an educated and fruitful member of our city.

Three programs to support thousands of students who are currently attending the ten schools in this Ward that are on the state's "warning" and "watch" lists due to poor performance. There simply needs to be more tutoring and mentoring support if these students are to ultimately compete for higher education and careers.

This maps above shows banks, insurance companies, and pharmacies in the First Ward. Perhaps employees from one of these local businesses can volunteer an hour or two a week to work with a kid who has potential but is lost in an overcrowded CPS classroom each day.

Other volunteers might help build web sites, or mentor kids in financial literacy.

Some of these businesses could use their advertising to draw customers to tutor/mentor programs in the Ward.

Maybe the same business can cut a check or donate supplies or other talents.

Not Enough People Know this Resource is Available to Them

At the Tutor/Mentor Conference this past week, community, media, and political leaders from Chicago and beyond attended workshops to learn about what we are doing with our maps. This fits a growing trend. Lately, I've been busy talking with similar leaders throughout the country who have come to me curious about whether similar mapping infrastructures can be set up to serve their local students.

INVARIABLY, the reaction I receive after coaching newcomers through our available resources (the Program Locator, this blog and my maps/stories, our New Interactive Asset Map, the Tutor/Mentor Institute's strategic documents, and the Map Gallery that will launch later this month) - is a reaction of...

"Why does no one know about these resources?!"

I spent several minutes at the conference shaking hands with program leaders who confirmed that they have used my maps to generate volunteers and dollars, which have helped them expand their ability to support the needs of students living in their reach. Yet others ask,

"Why have we never heard of these things?! People need to know these resources are out there!"

I shook hands with several community leaders and vowed to form a pact to make this happen.

One government official put me in touch this week with Alderman Flores, for whom these maps were made to demonstrate our mapping capacity.

Mapping for Money

This feedback from so many people confirms that our maps are a valuable resource that people in non profits, politics and business can use to help improve schools and lower poverty, and in turn, help kids move to jobs and careers.

But I hope this project doesn't end just as it's picking up momentum.

I live daily now with the spectre that the grant money that made this all possible a year and a half ago is gone.

I'm now officially Mapping For Money to continue Mapping For Justice!

Why should YOU care?

Well I guess you don't have to... But consider this:

Are you concerned about crime? Are you concerned about the future of the city and its economy? Workforce development and failing schools?

You read the papers and lament the 9 o'clock news whenever "another CPS student" is shot, right?

Look through the Leadership Strategies and other documentation in the Tutor/Mentor Institute, for explanations of how tutoring and mentoring can help underserved youth to get off a path that leads to street violence and poverty and onto one that opens doors to careers.

But New Programs Don't Pop Up Overnight

Leaders need to locate where programs are needed most, and which neighboring leaders are available to join this pact, before organizing strategic efforts to build new programs, and while ensuring the existing ones are able to take on more students.

A map is the right tool for the job.

Look at any of my maps on this blog and see that there are thousands of kids in EVERY district, ward or neighborhood... struggling to catch up in schools that are not meeting their needs. They are failing. They're on the verge of giving up. They need extra help.

(By the way, please map your own neighborhood if you aren't in the First Ward! Go to the online interactive map tool we built with our previous grant, and make a map that features YOUR community and your neighbors.)

Join This Pact With Us

I am hopeful that Manny Flores and other City Council members see these maps... that business leaders who are looking for an incredible cause to support recognize the value and invest in the maps... that President Obama and other patrons of the Hyde Park Barber Shop see my framed map on the wall and spread the word after their shave or haircut...

And I really hope YOU can join this pact with us.

"Poverty" and "crime" and "failing schools"? Enough bad news! Let's be a part of the solution.

A Donation to this Mapping Cause Brings Needed Support to ALL Programs and Students City-Wide.

Because it would be a tragedy if the Tutor/Mentor Connection's mapping program disappears just as it starts really making a visible difference in the lives of everyone.

Come See Me Present My Maps!

2009-05-26T14:07:00.011-05:00

I will be presenting and discussing my maps THIS FRIDAY at the 2009 Spring Tutor/Mentor Conference at the Northwestern University School Of Law, downtown Chicago. I will be presenting with Dan Bassill, president of Tutor/Mentor Connection, and community leader/organizer for over 30 years.

Using Maps to Create Collaborative Strategies.
Friday, May 29, 10:10 am - 11:10 am

Presented by Daniel Bassill, President
Mike Trakan, GIS Map Developer, of Tutor/Mentor Connection

Bassill and Trakan will overview collaboration strategies and uses of maps to draw volunteers and donors to different neighborhoods of a city, and to all tutor/mentor programs in each neighborhood. The speaker will also show how Google Maps can be used to locate potential business, church and civic partners in the same neighborhood of tutor/mentor programs.

This map shows areas of high poverty in Chicago, and locations of organizations
who were part of the November 2008 conference.

In addition to my presentation on my mapping tools, which are created to help community leaders build and sustain non school tutoring/mentoring facilities for students living in high-poverty neighborhoods...
(AND which look awesome, and will provoke questions and discussion...)

There will be workshops on non-profit planning, evaluation, recruitment and training, marketing and development. The focus will be on tutoring and mentoring of course, so if you are at all interested in learning more about these programs please join us. But there are networking and learning opportunities for anyone interested in community/social work... oh and did I mention the MAPS?!

Tutor/Mentor Leadership and Networking Conference

May 28 and 29, 2009

Northwestern University School of Law

365 E. Chicago Avenue

If you have not registered, please do so today!

$60 per day, but scholarships are available (free admission if you can't afford to drop $60 on non profit tutoring/mentoring... just say so in the comment box when you sign up...

we really need the donation, but we prefer to meet you and share the maps if money is the final factor.)

List of attendees here

Hope to see you there!

The Chicago Murder Report

2009-05-07T14:08:00.008-05:00

Commuters were greeted first thing this past Monday morning with some grim news. Reporter Tracy Swartz has been keeping tabs on all murders that have occurred in Chicago through the first 5 months of 2009. This week her work made the front page of the Chicago Tribune affiliated (and widely-distributed) free commuter paper, The Red Eye.

(Click on Maps For Larger Versions)

The online version of the story links to a Google Map that plots each of the 100+ murder locations, and then breaks down the stats, showing us that "most of the ... murders … were concentrated in South and West Side neighborhoods." … "Most of the victims were black, male and between the ages of 20 and 25 years old." She interviews a representative from the police and reveals the neighborhoods with the highest murder rates – notorious names: Greater Grand Crossing, Englewood and East Garfield Park . She explores ties to gang violence and guns. She paints us a picture of "the typical murder victim … black, male, between 17 and 25 years old [with] a prior arrest history."

I suspect these numbers and images are easy for most commuters to digest. After all, I assume most purple line riders already avoid these neighborhoods, either having no reason to venture into them, and/or fearing the alleged "warzone" activity that is routinely brought to our attention by local media.

I was reminded as I was reading, of an article I wrote a few months back in reaction to a different Chicago Tribune story. I wrote of how the media seems to have a lot of success with "counters." It sort of reminds me of watching ESPN sometimes. As though people can't wait to check in to see what the score is up to: "What is the number of dead CPS students today?" "How many murders has there been in the first quarter of the year?" The media seems to have either created, or at least taken advantage of a culture that sort of dehumanizes the people who are living in these scary neighborhoods.

Sadly, there is rarely as much effort from the media to introduce us to the people and groups who are working with the tens of thousands of students who aren’t among the 100 dead. There is little coverage of how many volunteers go into those neighborhoods and come out alive after working with programs that are working for solutions.

I've been wondering a lot lately: Why is revealing a dead count "investigative journalism," but encouraging readers to work for solutions "editorializing"? It seems sometimes that that's the way media looks at its role in handling social issues.

With this said, I applaud Swartz for going a step further and introducing us to community leaders that say "more emphasis should be placed on giving children alternatives to violence."

She focuses our attention in particular to the fantastic work Phillip Jackson does with his Black Star Project, "which reaches out to black youths with education and job training programs." She quotes Mr. Jackson as saying that "the black community needs to educate youth and provide them with mentors so they don't look up to gang members or drug dealers."

I agree of course, and like what Swartz is doing here, but still think this report falls a little short in one important area.

How can a concerned commuter get involved with a program like the Black Star Project? They can look them up on the web, fine. But what about the hundreds of other programs that are working in other neighborhoods with other demographics? Wouldn't it be helpful to hear about them too. Because of course, this is not an issue that affects only the black community (although you might get that sense when reading articles like this one that throw the word "black" at you over and over again). And Black Star is only one of 200+ known programs that offer tutoring/mentoring services to kids who are more interested in passing college entrance tests than pulling triggers.

In fact, if you look at my supplemental map at the top of this article, you might conclude that "poverty" might be a stronger predictor of violence than neighborhood of residence (or certainly race).

And if you look at my maps of the whole city, instead of the regularly featured neighborhoods (places by the way where law-abiding and business-deprived residents really don’t need the media to keep piling on the negativity), you’ll see that there ARE "alternatives to violence" that exist already – tutor/mentor programs.

You also might draw the conclusion that there needs to be a lot more programs (each one can handle only a few dozen kids and many need more funding and volunteer interest).

(Ok - I'll take a moment to briefly address the obvious question that comes up again and again: "How do T/M Programs help fight poverty and crime?" I certainly encourage you to peruse the many reports and articles at The "Tutor/Mentor Institute" that explain the logical connections.)

I hope the media looks at these strategic documents at The "Tutor/Mentor Institute" as well, and decides to do more than just report the negative news. I hope they find a way (within the bounds of however they define "journalistic integrity") to point concerned readers/viewers/listeners to the Tutor/Mentor Connections' database, and its online searchable Program Locator, so citizens can find a place to help kids of all races and ages everywhere find alternatives to the streets.

I plead with the media to use its leverage to direct donors and benefactors to non profits like Tutor/Mentor Connection so that they have the money to survive and continue working to end poverty and violence.

And of course my big idealistic dream is that one day, the media decides to use its immense power of persuasion to start wowing and shocking commuters with stories of hope and solution.

In America where the media is almost entirely commercialized, its role, whether they admit it or not, has become one of "taste-maker." Please make it fashionable for your customers to want to read about how problems are not only found, but actively addressed by programs like tutoring and mentoring. Society is relying on you for information. Right now it seems sometimes you're only doing half the job.

WBEZ Explores The CPS Drop Out Crisis: An Opportunity to Work Together for Solutions

2009-04-30T17:18:00.022-05:00

WBEZ is Chicago’s Public Radio, broadcasting at 91.5 FM from Navy Pier, with a strong signal that typically finds its way through the Chicago area and into Wisconsin and Indiana. Their position as a reputable leader in Chicago media is indisputable, and their mission, to "expand our outreach to the community and enhance our production effort through partnerships and educational programs with local and national institutions" represents welcomed support for schools and non school tutor/mentor programs throughout Chicago, each fighting daily to help students and families in high-poverty neighborhoods.

(Click on any map to see expanded view)

Recently WBEZ’s "City Room" program produced an incredible series of case-studies that explore the Chicago Public Schools' drop out crisis, focusing on students, parents, and faculty at Robeson High School. (You might remember Robeson from the map I did in February that explored "The Rest of the Story" behind the print media report of Robeson student Johnel Ford’s murder.)

The series is titled Fifty-Fifty Project: The Odds Of Graduating, and is chock full of eye-opening investigative journalism, providing a glimpse into the lives of those at Robeson. I highly recommend reading the transcripts while listening to archived stories and interviews at the WBEZ City Room website.

While I listen, I just can’t help but wonder why an alliance in support of the kids and schools, among concerned donors, volunteers, a media leader like WBEZ, and us here at Tutor/Mentor Connection does not already exist.

Imagine:

1. WBEZ (and/or other media sources) investigate and report out to millions of concerned citizens, donors, volunteers, and other leaders…

2. Concerned leaders/citizens say, "Wow – now that you’ve taken me up close and personal… I had no idea! What can we do to help?"

3. Some of these concerned listeners are associated through work or family or friends with other people who can cut checks or roll up their sleeves, but don't know where to go or what to do... they need to be pointed in the right direction before they lose focus and are consumed with more Swine Flu news.

WBEZ and the media can be a liaison at this point. In fact, some might argue the media has some responsibility TO BE a liaison at this point, once they uncover issue.

I understand that WBEZ’s job is primarily to investigate and report, but I hope there is a way to bridge this gap that exists between the moment listeners absorb and concern themselves with negative news... and the moment they ask, "Ok so what can I do?"

I would hope media outlets at least post contact information for community leaders working to address the problems they broadcast. Occasionally it would be cool to see or hear a panel discussion among leaders (with a disclaimer perhaps that "opinions don't reflect the views of the station," if needed).

I mean look at what is uncovered by WBEZ in their Fifty-Fifty Project: The Odds Of Graduating feature... Look at this perfect opportunity to report a problem and partner on some level with those who can go to work fixing that very problem...

In the Fifty-Fifty Project: The Odds Of Graduating series, we meet one parent who is "raising a 17-year-old in a neighborhood where street life looms larger than school" and "relying on prayer to help her through." Volunteer mentors at a tutor/mentor program near Robeson can help this mother, if one exists... if the mother knows about it... if volunteers know about it!

Reporter Natalie Moore reveals that "Most of the incoming freshman at Robeson High School in Chicago’s Englewood neighborhood read below grade level," and that teen pregnancy also contributes to drop outs. She reports that "Chicago Public Schools has nothing in place to address the problem. No prevention, no counseling once teens become parents. Instead it’s up to struggling neighborhood high schools like Robeson to figure out what to do." Clearly, academic tutoring can help the freshmen boost their reading skill and academic confidence... and mentoring can support better life decisions among the girls!

Reporter Julia McEvoy explores how "Teenage boys can face tough choices as they advance toward manhood. But the choices Demetrius Davis is making are critical. He knows he can go the way of his two older brothers—one of them is dead and the other in jail—or he can reject street life and focus on graduating high school." She also exposes how faculty at Robeson struggles to keep kids in school and on track. Tutoring and Mentoring can help CPS help keep students on track!

Linda Lutton reports that the Johnel Ford story we mapped in February represents only one of three Robeson student murders this year. She explores the violence crisis and introduces a teacher who "finds himself on the front lines of the dropout crisis, with few resources." Tutoring and Mentoring can be part of a comprehensive solution to the shortage of resources available to CPS teachers and students!

It's just such a wasted opportunity if all we do is listen to this amazing journalism, shake our heads in disbelief, and then do nothing proactive to address the problem.

But we need leaders. And with this in mind, I tend to think it's not enough for media leadership to simply expose problems. They can be leaders for change, while still maintaining their journalistic integrity.

For instance, when exposing negative news, why can't a media outlet's editorial staff mention the work people are doing in the field? Why can't their website point to directories of non profits and other organizations that offer service opportunities? (This seems to be particularly relevant when we consider the mission of community radio.)

In the case of the Fifty-Fifty Project: The Odds Of Graduating, why can't WBEZ direct concerned and action-minded listeners to places like Tutor/Mentor Connection, where listeners can get involved, ultimately helping to create more and better tutor/mentor programs for students in Englewood/Robeson and elsewhere?

I also call on the media to direct concerned donors, however ethically possible, to non profits like Tutor/Mentor Connection... who rely on charitable funding to survive, and to continue their important efforts.

And I call on YOU to do what you can... volunteer or donate if you can... but at the very least, contact media and business leadership and direct them to resources such as my blogs and maps, or this article at the "Tutor/Mentor Institute" that explains the logical connection behind combining adult volunteer mentors and inner city youth in one-on-one partnerships to help kids stay in school, succeed academically, find jobs, and alleviate our common concerns regarding drop-outs, crime, and poverty.

With media leadership, your proactive response to the negative news, and business dollars, there just might be a partnership out there that will make this work, before non profits that have the capacity for solutions run out of money, and Robeson just isn't news any more.

Obama's "Serve America Act": A Focus on Volunteering and Mentoring

2009-04-23T17:56:00.003-05:00

This week President Obama signed the Serve America Act into law. The Washington Post reports that the $5.7 billion bill is “designed to strengthen national community service efforts by boosting federal funding for thousands of volunteers in fields ranging from clean energy to health care and education.”

To highlight this legislation's potential benefits for students living in high poverty urban conditions, Obama, along with former President Clinton and Senator Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts, chose to sign the bill into law on location at the SEED School in Washington D.C. R&B star Usher was even in attendance. SEED teachers beamed with pride. And rightly so. What SEED students have overcome in just over a decade is nothing short of amazing.

Washington Post Reporter Hamil R. Harris recalls that the corner where the SEED School operates "used to be a perilous intersection filled with the gunfire of drug dealers roaming in old sedans." My maps (such as the one above) have explored similar high-crime neighborhoods in Chicago. Who knows how many students live in these conditions in urban settings coast to coast.

Today, eleven years after SEED opened its doors, its students in the same D.C. neighborhood graduate at a whopping 98% rate. Compare that to the national average of 56%. Pretty impressive, huh?

So what's SEED's secret?

Similar to Tutor/Mentor Connection and mixed tutor/mentor programs throughout Chicago, SEED operates on a nonprofit budget, partnering with community leaders "to prepare underserved students for success in college and beyond." They do this via an ambitious "boarding program, which teaches life skills and provides a safe and secure environment." Make no mistake, this is awesome, and SEED deserves plenty of attention, accolades, and funding from donors who have been waiting to learn about a great non profit to support.

But is this truly a volunteer/service-oriented setting?

I wonder after perusing their website, why the government chose a single school (whose website as far as I can tell gives little indication they work with volunteers at all) to launch a service-oriented bill? Is what SEED doing important and worthy of praise? Of course. Not taking away from the great work they do. But do they need the volunteers this bill is supposed to inspire? Apart from the one reference to a staff member who is in charge of "volunteer recruitment," and with no mention of volunteering on their employment page at all, I can’t help but wonder, after the fuzzy feeling generated by this photo op dissipates, if there will be an effort by government or media to guide the new army of volunteers to tutor/mentor programs - programs that rely exclusively on "volunteer service."

So I'm concerned.

I'm worried this "photo op" with SEED students and Usher today will be the end of the media's attention span on the issue. I fear this will mark the beginning and end of the government's exploration of how academics plus volunteer mentoring – the very thing the money is supposed to support – combine to help students. I worry that the public will be left with a misguided perception that our tax money is helping guide new volunteers to volunteer-reliant programs across the spectrum, when in reality it might only help the high-profile nonprofits. I worry that the $5.7 billion will be picked clean before it gets anywhere near the volunteer-based tutor/mentor programs that are reaching the hundreds of thousands of students SEED cannot – in D.C. and beyond.

Am I whining? Hell no... again, nothing against SEED, but I’m here to advocate on behalf of the rest of the students. I'm screaming for media and political attention to help volunteer-based tutoring and mentoring programs.

So I implore President Obama, whose barbers from the now-legendary Hyde Park Hair Salon visited Tutor/Mentor Connection yesterday and went home with my maps (!!!) to use as tools, as social and media leaders, to build awareness among potential volunteers and donors for nonprofit tutor/mentor programs... barbers taking the lead for overlooked and underserved students in high poverty conditions on the periphery of Obama's old Hyde Park stomping grounds:

Mister President, please work with the media to help us raise visibility and support for important volunteer-based tutor/mentor programs as well. Don't walk away from SEED thinking "Mission Accomplished."

... I also plead with community-minded businesses, politicians, media outlets, and volunteers to follow our President's lead and buy into the new national spirit of "service" ...

... and do something to invest in sustaining and developing volunteer-based tutor/mentor programs everywhere, to help the millions of students who don't have the resources offered by a "SEED" yet.

Please browse the links at the right of my blog to find examples of how you and your colleagues can help....

Or if you prefer, please contact Tutor/Mentor Connection or myself with questions of how to get started.

You might also want to take another look at the cool NEW IMPROVED Program Locator to find a program near you.

And don't forget to spend some time at the Tutor/Mentor Institute, which is chock full of resources that will help you get started forming partnerships and strategies in support of tutoring and mentoring.

A New Google-based Tutor/Mentor Program Locator!

2009-04-08T15:52:00.009-05:00

The Tutor/Mentor Connection (T/MC) is excited to launch a new version of its online Tutor/Mentor Program Locator.

Since 1993 the T/MC has been piloting the use of a mapping technology – GIS (Geographic Information Systems) – to create tools that help build and sustain comprehensive mentoring-to-career programs in every high-poverty neighborhood in the Chicago area, while providing resources that excite volunteers, donors, and community leadership about their roles in supporting this process.

(Click on the map to see an enlarged version.)

In May 1994 the T/MC first published a printed Directory of volunteer-based tutoring and/or mentoring programs serving Chicago, and operating in non school hours. The Directory was sent to about 3000 business, foundations, schools, libraries each year until 2001. The T/MC began to put its strategy on the Internet in 1998, and posted the Directory in a searchable on-line Program Locator in 2004. Its web sites recorded more than 100,000 visitors and one million page views in 2008. A search of Google for "tutor mentor" brings the website up first among thousands of listings. The new Program Locator is the next logical step in this technological evolution.

While the original Program Locator could be searched for type of program, age group served, and zip code, with the results plotted on a Google map, the new Program Locator takes advantage of Google technologies to provide interactive access to all poverty, asset, and boundary data – the same map layers used by the T/MC mapping department when we make the maps featured in stories at http://mappingforjustice.blogspot.com/ and elsewhere on the Internet.

For those new to the concept of tutoring and mentoring, tutor/mentor programs are nonprofit facilities that offer one-to-one volunteer-student tutoring and mentoring services during non-school hours. The programs are vital to the success of college-minded and career-oriented students who are a little behind the curve due to inadequate school facilities and the challenges of high-poverty.

(Please note: There is a wide variety of organizations that offer volunteer-based tutoring and/or mentoring in the Chicago region. The role of the T/MC Directory is to help people know where they are, and how to contact them, rather than to judge which program is better than any other. Through other services of the T/MC, we seek to help each program get ideas, volunteers and resources to constantly improve and expand the quality and impact of their services. See more about this at http://www.tutormentorprogramlocator.net/ProgramLocator/disclaimer.asp )

Thanks to a generous donation received in November 2007, the T/MC hired me, Mike Trakan, in January 2008 to rebuild its desktop mapping capacity. If you scroll through the links on the side you can see the maps I’ve created since then, and articles that I’ve written to show people how they can use maps.

In each article, I use several different map images to illustrate my message. Each map shows different “layers” of information I have collected and mapped over the past year, using desktop ArcGIS software donated by ESRI. (Just a note: ESRI has been donating software to the T/MC since 1995. We would not have this capacity if these donations had not been provided.)

What’s special about the new Interactive Program Locator is that you are now able to create your own maps, very similar to the ones I make at the Chicago office of the Tutor/Mentor Connection.

In addition to plotting program locations, the new Program Locator offers a visual Google-style representation of T/MC data, highlighting relationships among existing programs, poverty, and available community resources.

With a T/MC mapping tool like the new Program Locator in hand, any community leader – from businesses, universities, hospitals, or churches for starters – can quickly zoom to a high-poverty neighborhood to see where programs are needed or missing completely. Leaders can then find geographic relationships among programs, themselves, and potential partners – and ultimately organize alliances that support existing programs or build new ones if needed.

You can review the features of the new Program Locator at http://www.tutormentorprogramlocator.net/Programlocator/TMCHelp.aspx

You can also review this animated presentation to learn more about the features of the new Program Locator: http://www.tutormentorprogramlocator.net/Programlocator/Intro.aspx

Of course, important features that were a part of the original Program Locator remain. Browse program locations to find addresses, phone numbers, contact names, hours of operation, age-group served, and website links. The new Program Locator simply offers you – the volunteers, donors, parents and youth – new depth, and an additional understanding of where support for tutor/mentor programs is most needed.

How are these maps to be used?

The articles I’ve written for the past year show how the maps can be used. I encourage you to read these. I also encourage you to read the articles Dan Bassill, President of the T/MC writes, at http://tutormentor.blogspot.com/.

We’re illustrating how maps can be used by business, religious, political and education leaders to mobilize resources that make constantly improving, volunteer-based tutor/mentor programs available to more of the children living in high poverty neighborhoods of the Chicago region. We’re demonstrating how leaders in other communities can use maps for the same purpose.

We’ll keep writing articles and creating new maps so please bookmark or subscribe to our blogs and use them as a training course for your own staff and community leaders. As you look at these maps, and articles, ask yourself these questions:

“What are the actions I or my organization can take to assure that every youth born in poverty today is starting a job and career by age 25?”

“How do we assure that there are great tutor/mentor programs in all of the neighborhoods where they are needed, rather than a few great programs in a few locations?”

“How do we help all of these programs have the resources and ideas that enable them to have a growing impact on helping kids move through school and into 21st century jobs and careers?”

To help get the creative juices flowing, Dan has collected and/or designed a bunch of strategy templates and documents which he shares in the Tutor/Mentor Institute at http://www.tutormentorexchange.net/

Please take a look at the new Program Locator and build your own understanding. Then please let us know what you think.

We want to know from you how you are using this tool. We also want to know what might work better.

Since we’re a non profit and have built this service with the help of volunteers and a few donors, we’re also looking for other people who will provide money needed to manage this service, and make the improvements that many of you will want as you begin to use the site.

Again, please post your comments below. And thank you for supporting tutoring and mentoring programs in Chicago!

Volunteering: Easy to get to Programs. Small Investment. Big Rewards.

2009-03-23T14:03:00.012-05:00

I make maps that show city boundaries, locations of "failing schools," the 2000 Census bureau's poverty tracts... and then overlay these with locations of community assets and known non-school tutoring and mentoring programs.

The feedback I receive on patterns that emerge range from concern to shock to outrage.

But we at Tutor/Mentor Connection don't stop at exposing the clear lack of quality tutoring and mentoring programs - programs that exist as options for students who need a little help to compete for college placement, jobs, and ultimately community/business/political leadership.

We also propose comprehensive solutions.

My maps are free tools that business leaders can use in creating strategies that invigorate the local economy through investment in - and philanthropic funding of tutor/mentor programs.

We propose solutions to the problems that concern communities - strategies that universities, hospitals, places of worship, and concerned parents can use to address issues of crime, violence, and poverty.

We also provide district overviews of resources and assets for politicians to incorporate into the work they do for their constituency...

And we encourage the media to provide tutoring/mentoring-based solutions when discussing problems associated with inadequate school facilities, poverty, and gangs.

But one part of a comprehensive solution to the lack of non-school tutoring/mentoring options... a part that I frequently tend to gloss over... is you and your ability to volunteer as a one-to-one mentor for students at the programs.

Simply, without volunteers, there are no programs.

That's what this is all about: Pairing students with volunteers in long-term relationships whereby the student gains needed help on homework (tutoring) and needed direction in developing a course of action that will put her/him on college and career paths (mentoring). Many of these kids do not receive this guidance at home and are a bit lost on how to get there from here.

You've been there. For an investment of a couple hours each week, you can answer so many questions that seem simple to you but are not for the students. "How do I research schools? How do I fill out an application? Where do I start?"

For this same investment, you get to meet an amazing kid, and grow yourself. The volunteers at a tutor/mentor program like Cabrini Connections almost invariably report personal fulfillment and growth as a primary factor in staying on year after year.

Some of you think this sounds great, but how do I get there? "I commute on train... I don't have a car. I don't have a lot of time!" Not surprisingly, many programs are within seconds of a stop on your Metra line. If you have a monthly pass, as I do, perhaps you might consider jumping off for a few hours and then jumping back on after working with a student on an art or tech project?

Even more programs are within minutes of the route your CTA "el" train takes:

... And if you think outside the box a little bit, you might be able to combine efforts/communter options to make an even easier customized solution to your transport/volunteer concerns.

For instance, many people may be concerned with venturing alone into unknown high-poverty areas of the city. Who wouldn't be? Look at the highways in relation to programs and commuter rail in the maps above. Perhaps a safe, effective, and efficient strategy might involve carpooling to your downtown job with friends/coworkers (saving gas), heading to a program near a Metra stop with one or two members of the carpool, and then using Metra to head home together after a couple hours of tutoring?

I hope you use these maps to find a route that takes you to a program of your choice one night a week. Without your help... without volunteers, programs can't grow. New, needed programs can't start.

Please click on either of the maps above to get larger, detailed maps, to get started.

For details on the specific CTA Stations, please visit the CTA system map. For details about Metra Stations, their website is here.

And for details about the programs that are near stops on your commuter line, visit the Tutor/Mentor Connection's online searchable Program Locator.

For information about volunteering in general , go here.

Suntimes Explores Solutions to the "Crisis" of Chicago's Teen Violence

2009-03-10T16:00:00.003-05:00

Recently I blogged on separate occasions about a frustrating phenomenon whereby the mass media rehashes the same "CPS Student Murdered" stories over and over - only to let the story go when distracted by something else. There's rarely a discussion of solutions before they leave.

I'm happy to report that an editorial in the Suntimes this week does just that.

Please review my recent blogs here and here...

and try to imagine how easily my maps, and Tutor/Mentor Institute strategies might be incorporated into the "comprehensive strategy" proposed the Chicago Public Schools (CPS), political leaders, and the editorial writer, in the fight against teen violence.

So how do I think adding tutoring and mentoring to a "comprehensive strategy" to fight teen violence would help?

Well let's start by looking at what is being proposed by those mentioned in the editorial.

The editorial reports that Ron Huberman (former CTA chief, and newly-appointed Chicago Public Schools boss) is "identifying schools that have what he calls a 'culture of calm' (respect between adults and kids, no kids hanging out in the hallways) and trying to export that culture to schools that clearly could use it."

Ok. School culture. I would ask: Is a chaotic school culture the root of the violence problem or a symptom? Let me say that I understand that the CPS boss is looking at the schools themselves in finding solutions. Fair enough - that IS his jurisdiction after all, right? But I hope he would look deeper than "culture" in his pursuit.

So what else is he doing?

"School officials compiled [shooting] data to look for patterns."

This makes perfect sense to me. I deal with data and reveal patterns (with maps) all the time. Here's one that shows a recent triple murder of CPS kids...

... with some clear patterns. We see a lot of poverty in the vicinity, a bunch of "failing" schools, and a notable absence of non-school tutoring and mentoring program facilities for kids who are hanging out at 3:15 in the afternoon. Most of my "Rest of the Story" maps have the same patterns.

What is Mr Huberman doing with his data and patterns?

"Huberman, well-known for his love of data, is analyzing shooting patterns, transportation routes, gang turf boundaries and school attendance boundaries. That data will be used to devise safer routes to school for kids in risky areas, with a team at each school monitoring and updating the routes."

(I'll refrain from any jokes related to the effectiveness of CTA transportation routes under Huberman's management, because this is a serious thing, and in all seriousness, I REALLY do hope he has success in finding an effective (albeit short-term) solution to keeping kids safe on their route to and from school.)

Anything else in the comprehensive strategy?

Well, according to the article, the CPS points out that none of the shootings actually happened in school, and that most of them occur near the students' homes. The CPS seems to be doing what they can to get students safely to their facilities, and trying to somehow import a "culture" of calm to maintain order in the hallways.

It almost feels like that's all they feel they need to do.

Ok, then who in the community will step up and offer leadership beyond the jurisdiction of the CPS? The editorial tells us that state Representative Monique Davis is introducing a bill that "would require schools in violence-prone areas to hire a full-time social worker (most have only part-time help)."

The writer of this editorial agrees that this would be helpful but is concerned that it is still "not sweeping enough and, without a clear funding source, could simply be another unfunded, burdensome mandate."

I agree, but would add that I am concerned that political leadership, in looking for solutions to violence in the community, is pointing fingers at the CPS as the place to address the problem.

So what does the writer of the editorial think would help?

The writer adds that "one answer lies in compelling schools to adopt a radical new approach to teaching -- one that ... teaches basic skills that many kids don't get at home, such as how to get along and how to empathize -- skills that research shows improve test scores and behavior."

(Mentoring.)

So now we have a "comprehensive solution" (with everyone pointing at the schools to fix the problem) that involves looking at shooting data to ensure safe transport of kids through war zones... magically funding additional social workers at schools... and adding 'mentoring' to the already-burdened workload and curriculum of a teacher (who also gets pressure to forego teaching in order to coach 'test-taking' in last-minute and desperate attempts by administrators to improve results on standardized tests... results which are often used to penalize and sanction "failing schools"... the ones in black on my maps... the ones engulfed in poverty and - according to the patterns my data has revealed on this blog - the ones likely to be found near the site of media-reported shootings).

Wow.

Here is an idea. And please do continue to make sure kids are getting safely to and from school, however that is implemented. Fine.

But can we PLEASE address the problem at its root?

What is the appeal of a gang? Why are kids violent?

Here is my guess as to how this might work. Granted I am no sociologist, but tell me if this doesn't seem common sensible: Poverty and no career options = hopelessness. Hopelessness breeds anger. Angry and impoverished adults and adolescents need to survive. We're all living in a capitalist system where money is needed to survive. If there is no career path, there is money on the streets. Can you see the appeal to crime? Crime is often organized by gangs. Violence is a natural product.

But what if there was REAL alternative "career path" to the streets? My guess is many would-be gang members would consider it.

Here's where Tutor/Mentor Programs fit in!

Tutor/Mentor Programs give kids a safe place to work on skills needed for the job market... with real volunteers who have been to college and have developed their marketable skills.

I hear skeptics scream all the time (referring to kids as "they" of course), "Their parents should be doing this job. Not me." The same skeptics tsk and moan about all the violence.

Look - the issue is not whether or how parents can do a better job. The reality is that these are KIDS. Kids who aren't getting the guidance and support you got, for whatever reason. Some of these kids end up playing an angry and violent game with the cards they've been dealt. Kids.

I propose that any "comprehensive solution" to violence might include proliferating tutor/mentor facilities, and stocking them with volunteer tutors/mentors who can offer kids living in poverty skills to use in careers, versus those learned on the streets.

Without the programs, the burden of providing kids this training falls on overworked teachers, and parents who may not have the experience to properly guide children out of poverty and into functional society. This is the current system. This is the "new comprehensive strategy." It doesn't work alone. Tutor/Mentor Programs are at least one of the missing components.

So it is my hope that, in addition to finding funding to staff more social workers in CPS schools (good luck)... and in addition to procuring safe passage to schools, political, business, and community leadership will include my maps in their analysis of data... and explore strategies that improve support for tutoring and mentoring when developing their "comprehensive strategies."

And it is my hope that WE ALL do what we can to encourage the leaders to support this vision, the programs, the kids, and a less violent society.

Media Needs To Report More Than Hopelessness... The Rest of The Story...

2009-02-25T15:46:00.017-06:00

There were two more media stories from this past week that brought attention to teens killing teens on the South Side.

The first, on February 21, focused on 16 year old Racheal Beauchamp, who was shot in the head while driving in a car with alleged gang members at 11:15 p.m. on a Thursday evening in Brighton Park. This map shows the location of the shooting and her home, in relation to poverty, "failing" schools, community resources, and existing tutoring/mentoring programs. (Click on the maps to enlarge):

The second story was a triple homicide in the South Chicago neighborhood. Johnny Edwards, 13, Raheem "Chiko" Washington, 15, and Kendrick Pitts, 17 were each shot near 87th and Exchange. One local resident, quoted in the Tribune article, dubbed the high-poverty, high-crime South Chicago neighborhood "Death Row" because "someone's always getting shot." Another mother added that, "Area gang members just don't care ... They shoot everybody and anybody."

Note, when looking at the map that there is only one known mixed tutoring/mentoring program in "Death Row"...

Last week, I wrote a "Rest of the Story" blog that looked at the murder of Johnel Ford, a story the media reported as "the first CPS student killed in 2009." In that blog, I asked a few questions that I feel apply to this week's stories as well. When looking at the maps above, I hope community and program leaders continue to ask , "What are we doing to support existing tutoring and mentoring services? And how can we get our message to concerned parents who want safe places for their children to hone scholastic and vocational skills?"

I hope community leaders continue to use my maps to visualize problems and to locate available resources, combining strategies from the Tutor/Mentor Institute to address these questions.

I hope politicians that represent Rachael and her family (from Illinois State Legislative District 2, Illinois State Senate District 1, and the Illinois 3rd U.S. Congressional District), and those who represent the parents of the South Chicago neighborhood (Illinois State Legislative District 25, Illinois State Senate District 13, and the Illinois 2nd U.S. Congressional District) look at maps and stories from the following districts as starting points, before contacting me for a custom map:

Illinois State Legislative District 34
Illinois State Senate District 15
Illinois 7th U.S. Congressional District

Look - I know what you're thinking. "The problem is bigger than tutoring and mentoring. This violence is out of control. This situation is hopeless!"

Right?

Ok - first of all I should say, that we at the Tutor/Mentor Connection do not claim that a few new programs are going to be an overnight fix to 16 year old girls riding with gangbangers on a Thursday night in Brighton Park.

Or to the street violence in South Chicago.

But ONE program in the entire South Chicago neighborhood? Come on! We can do more to help the kids who aren't gangbanging and who are looking for help to lead productive lives.

What we want is for everyday people (like you and me) to do whatever they can to support existing and new program alternatives for these kids.

Start small... Volunteer if you can. But at the very least, talk about the programs (and these maps) with colleagues and bosses. Build awareness that these programs save lives, help kids get to college, and improve communities. (See the student spotlights at Chris's PIPblog for proof.)

We ultimately need community, business, spiritual, and political leadership to start thinking more consistently about how they can invest in the talented students who are trapped in seas of poverty, violence, and fear.

But first, leaders have to become aware of the programs and their successes.

And looking at these news stories this past week, and knowing that there are only so many people we can talk to on individual levels... I have a new question:

Who better to raise widespread awareness than far-reaching media outlets like the Chicago Tribune?

It would be so helpful if the media could consistently champion the successes of tutoring and mentoring as potential solutions to the problems of urban violence and fear.

All too often, these crime stories rise to editorial levels, only to disappear just as quickly when the press becomes distracted by, oh I don't know... a red right-turn light that was confusing shoppers at Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg. That's the headline right now as I type this. (I'd map it for you, but it might only confuse shoppers more.)

Ok, I'm kidding, and I certainly don't mean to be disrespectful to the papers, the journalists, or the shoppers... I just want to be constructively critical for a minute here.

The point is that over and over, the media seems to simply cut and paste new "gangbanger" names into dutifully-rehashed article templates, adding 1 to the "CPS Students Killed" ticker, and then losing focus... leaving us with an impression of hopelessness... little new awareness... little or no discussion of things we can do to relieve the situation moving forward.

No solutions.

In 2008, Dan Bassill voiced frustration with this phenomenon when he responded to an article written by Dawn Turner Trice in the October 23, 2008 Chicago Tribune, called "Market woes should pale next to local carnage." He challenged the media (reflecting on our work and goals here at Tutor/Mentor Connection):

"I can create all of this, but if no one looks at it, I'm a crowd of one. It's up to you in the media to connect your stories to information that people can use to learn more about the problem and to get involved in the solutions. If you do this once a week for the next ten years, maybe others will follow your example and they will help us put more programs in these areas to help parents, and compete with gangs, for the attention of kids."

So again, can the programs solve the city's teen violence problems overnight? Probably not.

The programs can however offer a message of hope now.

Hope for beleaguered parents and students in high-crime areas, when they learn that peers and neighbors have succeeded in bypassing the violence, and have gone on to achieve scholastic and vocational success.

Hope for concerned citizens and community leaders who have become aware of these successes through word of mouth and media-generated discussion, and realize they are in position to contribute volunteer/financial support to a system that WORKS...

on small individual levels now...

with the potential for big successes for society later.

Media Reports "SW Side teen first CPS student fatally shot in '09"... The Rest of The Story...

2009-02-18T15:43:00.008-06:00

The Chicago Tribune and Sun-Times each ran stories last week that brought attention to the "1st CPS student killed in 2009." The Tribune has since pulled its article from its archives, but the Sun-Times story still exists as of this posting.

As usual, the story breaks our hearts. And fits a pattern. Usually goes like this:

Young man or girl with big dreams, shot by another teenager. Often the student is living in high-poverty areas of the South or West Sides. Often, the media proposes ties to gangs (which the family often denies in the article.) And almost always, they make a point of telling us that he/she is a student at a Chicago Public School. It's been sort of trivalized - like a game: Counting and posting the number of 'CPS Students Killed' ... versus simply reporting "Teen with high potential shot" or something more human. But I digress.

So anyway, this particular Sun-Times article reports a few of these predictible details...

...That 16 year old Johnel Ford was shot in the head about 4:30 p.m. on February 12, 2009. It occured on the 5900 block of S. Campbell. And that he was "a 'funny, smart, intelligent' kid who had a natural mechanical ability, ... and wanted to go to college." But he had made some "enemies" lately. The Tribune article (that, again, wasn't archived for some reason) added that Johnel had run into trouble at Gage Park High School (near his home and the sight of the shooting) and had recently transfered to Robeson. This Trib article reported that another group of young men opened fire when confronted by Johnel's cousin for unknown reasons. The bullet missed the cousin and hit the unintended victim, Johnel, who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Ok, at this point, I have to say it...

Johnel could have been in a tutor/mentor program at 4:30pm on a Thursday afternoon instead of on the street, perhaps receiving guidance from an adult mentor... working toward his college dreams.

What if an article actually mentioned this?

What if the Sun-Times showed a map that told the "rest of the story," and explored potential tutoring-/mentoring-based solutions?

Here is my "The Rest Of The Story Map" (As always, be sure to click on the map to see an enlarged version):

Perhaps if people saw this map, and a reporter initiated a discussion of tutor-/mentor-related solutions, people would start asking questions!

I have a few.

For starters, what are those two tutor/mentor programs doing in the neighborhood to promote their service to students like Johnel? Did he even know they were available for him? Maybe they offer a safe place to get tutoring, work on computers, talk about life with adult mentors, or simply meet and befriend other college-bound peers at 4:30pm on a Thursday?

And really, how extensive are the services the programs offer? How could Johnel learn about them?

Lawyers Lend-A-Hand lists the programs on their master list but doesn't necessarily support them, and it becomes even less clear to me how "quality" these programs are when I try to check out their websites. Unfortunately one program doesn't even have a website that could give Johnel info about its services. The other one gives an indication on its site that they are active and offer one-to-one volunteer-to-student mentoring, but doesn't give as much detail as a great site like, say, East Village Youth Program about what the program offers a kid like Johnel .

With this said, I am making an educated guess that these programs (like all programs that rely on volunteer/part-time help, and operate on shoe-string budgets) can use help getting the word out to the kids on the streets, and to potential volunteer tutor/mentors.

So my next questions is, looking at available resources in the 2 square mile area around the crime...

What are business leaders doing in the neighborhood to support these two existing programs?

As we've seen in other blogs, the mass-market retailers, banks, and insurance companies here (in concert with other businesses that aren't mapped) can use strategies on the Tutor/Mentor Institute to collaborate efforts and build alliances that recruit volunteers, pool money, and post program info for the community to see.

And of perhaps greater importance, who is working to add NEW program options for the students living here?

Commonly, programs have a maximum capacity of up to 75 students. Assuming these two programs are operating at this capacity (and knowing that there are far more than 150 students living in this area), it's easy to determine that this is a region in Chicago that has an urgent need for new quality mixed tutoring/mentoring programs.

Spirtual leaders can help here, perhaps opening their doors to host new programs. They can also help by preaching the benefits of tutoring and mentoring to their congregations, raising awareness for students and parents, while simultaneously creating enthusiam and promoting sense of community. The Tutor/Mentor Institute has a document that deals with this specifically, called "How Faith Communities Can Lead Volunteer Mobilization For Tutor/Mentor Programs."

Oh, and state and federal politicians who serve this area's constituents can request custom maps like the one I created for the 5th Illinois Legislative District, to use in conjunction with strategic documents from the Tutor/Mentor Institute, in order to facilitate/lead the entire support/creation process.

Call me optimistic, but it's my feeling that we can find a way to reach more underachieving students who are currently living in high-stress situations... students who have dreams that perhaps seem inaccessible... get them off the streets... and give them the direction they need to get to college, become responsible adults, and contribute to the revitalization of our communities.

We can work together to provide the tutoring and mentoring support that can save the life of a Johnel Ford, and groom his talents for the improvement of society as a whole.

Legal Community Collaborates to Fund Tutoring and Mentoring

2009-02-13T14:02:00.014-06:00

On Wednesday, December 17, 2008, the Sun-Times Judge Marovitz Lawyers Lend-A-Hand to Youth Program (LAH) awarded $217,000 in grants to 27 "exemplary" tutor/mentor programs in the Chicago area. These programs qualified for these grants by maintaining a high ratio of volunteer-to-student one-on-one mentoring.

LAH points out on their website that "the money will benefit over 2,500 Chicago-area young people." On his blog, Dan Bassill explains the importance of this funding to the operations of non profits that won the awards... programs like his Cabrini Connections and Tutor/Mentor Connection organizations.

I've mapped the locations of the programs that received these grants, in relation to poverty, and "failing schools":

If you recall, I built a similar map last summer that showed last year's LAH grant recipients. If you take a peek again at that map (below, left... and please click on any of these maps to enlarge them)...

... and compare it to this year's map (the big one above), you see that many of the same programs met LAH qualifications both years, and received grants both years. This sort of collaboration, among professionals in the same industry, represents a solution to one of the greatest challenges to non profit tutor/mentor programs: Securing the continued, consistent, and reliable funding needed to provide the continued, consistent, and reliable tutoring/mentoring "high-risk" students need.

So this is a great story. However, that said...

27 programs is far fewer than the 200+ programs that exist in Tutor/Mentor Connection's searchable online program locator database.

The map below/right shows all known "tutor-only," "mentor-only," and "mixed tutor-mentor" programs in the program locator database. What does this mean?

Well, my first question is, are there more programs out there, in addition to all the ones we know about (plotted on this map)?

If so, they should "get the word out" about their program, and let the tutor/mentor community know what they are doing locally. I mean if a collaboration like LAH - one that is itching to give out donor money - doesn't know about the work a program is doing, that program would obviously not be receiving money from a potential income source.

A great place to start raising visibility would be the program locator. If you're out there doing tutor/mentor work, and not coming up in search, please add your program's information today.

My second question is, are there programs in the program locator whose data is currently incomplete or inaccurate?

This would be unfortunate for several reasons. Ignoring for a moment the fact that parents and students would be misguided by outdated or incomplete data when shopping at the program locator for a tutor/mentor service, there might be situations where programs are losing opportunities for funding as well. For instance, if a search of the program locator returns a record for a program, and shows it as "tutor-only"... but this program is actually doing mentoring work as well... this is another situation where failing to report and maintain program locator data could lead to missing a funding opportunity.

In short, I guess what I'm trying to say is that programs need to regularly visit and maintain their program locator data to ensure it is up to date.

Ok, but what about the programs that ARE in the program locator and ARE meeting the "exemplary" tutoring and mentoring standards a collaboration like LAH rewards? The map to the left shows that there are far more than 27 programs doing mixed tutor/mentor work. An alliance like LAH has only so much money to give.

Are there other networks (Lawyers LAH obviously represents the legal industry) that can forge alliances that help fund tutoring and mentoring programs?

Perhaps medical or spiritual groups (quick examples among dozens of possibilities)... or better yet, any professionally affiliated networks with common interest in the common good, can bond together as LAH has done, to raise awareness within their networks to the importance of mentoring disadvantaged youth... to help recruit volunteers to serve as mentors, to encourage members to serve on boards and donate management expertise to programs... and of course to generate funding for continued non profit tutor/mentor operations. Strength in numbers.

Lastly... as subscribers to this blog are aware, I always wonder:

How can we encourage community and political leadership to come together and work with the assets and resources in their neighborhoods to support existing high-quality programs, and to develop new ones where there is a need and none exist?

We can't forget, as we look at that last map above (the one that shows all programs known to be doing mixed tutor/mentor work), that there are huge pockets in Chicago that are packed with poverty and "failing" schools... areas "in need" that have limited or no tutoring/mentoring support for its students during non-school hours.

This blog continues to encourage community leadership to use my maps and the strategies at the Tutor/Mentor Institute, as starting points to generate logistical and financial support for programs in their community.

Please use the quick links at the right side of this website to find blogs I have written that focus on your industry, interest, or area of professional expertise. And then please got involved!