4 Key Questions about Your Volunteer Program

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Involving the Community In Decisions Data
Gathering for SILCs June 12, 2008
Presented by Judy Sharken Simon Manager Board
Volunteer Services jsharkensimon_at_mapfornonprofits.
org 651-632-7222 Brad Williams Executive
Director, New York SILC bradw_at_nysilc.org 518-427-1
060 voice TTY
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What well cover

1. Community Input Why Bother?
2. Commonly Used Methods for Gathering Input
3. One SILCs Story
4. Possible Barriers
5. Resources
6. Next Steps

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What were hoping you leave with

• Identify primary data gathering methods
• Recognize advantages and disadvantages of each
  method
• Identify appropriate methods and resources needed
  for successful implementation
• Cite the importance of consumer and other
  stakeholder involvement in the decision making
  process

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Community Input Why Bother?

• It is a way to involve people and create
  investment
• It is good business practice
• It creates buy-in
• It helps to legitimize the choices
• It affirms or denies assumptions
• It allows us to make more informed, and
  presumably, better decisions
• While it takes more time up front, it speeds the
  process down the line
• It promotes 2-way communication and
• collaborations

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Commonly Used Methods for Gathering Input

• Interviews
• Surveys
• Community Forums
• Focus Groups
• Email comment

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Interviews

• Typically used
• Before planning, ideas for program design,
  upfront advice
• After assessment, summary, reaction

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Most Important Things to Remember about Interviews

• Good for more in-depth conversation
• They are time consuming
• Important when key relationships are at stake

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The Downside of Interviews

• Lack of synergy
• Require time
• Limited quantities are possible
• Difficult to standardize and quantify responses

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Surveys

• Typically used
• Before market research
• Ongoing name changes, recruit new clients
• After evaluation

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Most Important Things to Remember about Surveys

• Survey design is very important
• Quantitative analysis of results is critical
• Helpful in reaching broadly

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The Downside of Surveys

• Response rate can be low
• Little opportunity for probing
• Can be costly to administer
• Online survey instruments have trade-offs
• Cost (ongoing).
• Training curve.
• ACCESSIBILITY!

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Community Forums

• Typically used in
• Collecting opinions, beliefs and attitudes about
  issues of interest to your organization
• Building energy, ideas, and excitement about a
  topic
• Providing an opportunity to learn more about a
  topic

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Most Important Things to Remember about Community
Forums

• Logistics are critical
• Orchestration of the event can make all the
  difference
• Great opportunity for PR

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The Downside of Community Forums

• Logistics can be overwhelming need good
  staffing
• The group can take on a life of its own
• Capturing the data can be challenging

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Focus Groups

• Typically used
• Before planning, program design, market
  research
• Ongoing name changes, recruit new clients
• After assessment, summary, post mortem, image

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Most Important Things to Remember about Focus
Groups

• They are most useful in capturing peoples ideas,
  beliefs, feelings
• Helpful in combination with other methods
• Create opportunities for fun, engagement,
  interaction

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The Downside of Focus Groups

• Need a skilled facilitator
• Time is limited so number of questions is also
  limited

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Email Comment

• Typically used in
• Collecting opinions, beliefs and attitudes
• Ongoing during the course of public comment
  period
• After feedback, further thoughts

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Most Important Things to Remember about Email
Comment

• Be prepared for large volume
• Set up your processes beforehand
• It is the most accessible and least controlled
  medium

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The Downside of Email Comment

• Difficult to analyze the data
• Lacks ability to probe or bounce ideas off one
  another
• Responses tend to come from those most passionate
  (pro or con)
• Some responses come from targeted or organized
  efforts to support popular initiatives as opposed
  to random comments.

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The Process for Any Method

• Step 1 Define the purpose
• Purpose needs to be very clear so that you can
• Communicate why youre doing it to participants,
• Develop focused questions
• Get the information you really want
• Examples
• To gather input on service needs in the
  disability community.
• Why do you want to know that? To find out if the
  top priority needs in the state were adequately
  reflected in the state plan.
• CLEARER To gather community input to ensure
  that the service needs matched with the
  components outlined in the state plan.
• To hear what our constituents think we do.
• Why do we want to know that? Because we need to
  revise our mission statement.
• CLEARER To hear constituents ideas about our
  current mission statement and how to revise.

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Step 2

• Establish the timeline
• New York SILC
• May 2006 - SPIL committee meets to make decisions
  about process
• August 2006 Develop important outreach
  materials
• September 2006 Distribute outreach materials to
  the statewide network and post them on website
  for review and comment
• Early October 2006 Conduct three statewide
  public hearings at CIL sites
• Late October 2006 Conduct four additional
  hearings at breakout sessions of statewide annual
  conferences to expand feedback beyond the CIL
  network
• November 2006 SPIL committee meets face-to-face
  to review increased input

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Steps 3 4

• Identify and invite the participants
• Generate the questions to be asked

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NYSILC Example

• FACILITATION OUTLINE
• USE OF TITLE VII, PART B FUNDS These funds are
  resource oriented. Approximately 750,000 is
  available.
• What is the best way to maintain and/or improve
  support for the statewide systems advocacy
  network?
• What do you think are the top technical
  assistance and training needs of the statewide
  network?
• What is the best way to increase public awareness
  about CILs and issues important to people with
  disabilities?
• What is the best way CILs can conduct outreach
  to unserved and underserved populations? What has
  worked in your community?
• USE OF TITLE VII, PART C FUNDS These funds are
  for center operations. Sixteen CILs presently
  receive twenty-one grants totaling 4 million.
  The previous SPIL used new funds for the
  establishment of new CILs. The current plan
  directs all new funds to the existing Federal
  network of CILs until they receive a minimum of
  200,000 each.
• How can the statewide network best use new Title
  VII, Part C funds?
• How can NYSILC encourage the maintenance and
  growth of a statewide network of centers?
• What unserved or underserved areas of the state
  still exist?

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NYSILC Example continued

• DESCRIPTION OF EXTENT AND SCOPE OF INDEPENDENT
  LIVING SERVICES.
• With housing such a priority, and CILs being
  non-residential, what can be done to increase
  affordable and accessible housing options?
• What resources do CILs need to effectively
  divert or transition people with disabilities out
• of institutional settings?
• What role should CILs play in the transition of
  students with disabilities?
• What role should CILs play in the implementation
  of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA)?
• OPEN COMMENTS.

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Step 5

• Maybe
• Develop a script
• Select a facilitator
• Choose the location

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Steps 6, 7, 8

• Initiate the Method
• Interpret and report the results
• Translate the results into action

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Questions to Ask Yourself

• What kind of information am I trying to obtain?
• Who would conduct this kind of research?
• Who would be participating?

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Whats Worked for You? Additional Questions or
Comments?
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One SILCs Story

• Transition Over Several State Plans
• From two to three sparsely attended hearings and
  the state plan partners hashing out the SPIL to
• An empowered SPIL committee directing the process
• Developing outreach materials
• Defining modes of feedback/venues
• Greatly increasing involvement in the process and
  input into the plan

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The SPIL Committee

• Efficient at completing work tasks.
• Facilitation Outline
• Accomplishments
• Public Hearing Schedule
• Made important decisions when necessary.
• Summary of increased input.
• Comment period on preliminary SPIL draft
• Good at stepping back and letting the process
  work.

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How Did We Achieve Expanded Input?

• Besides three statewide public hearings at CILs
  (facilitation notes/audio tape), other methods
  included
• Breakout sessions at four statewide conferences
  especially to gain a non-IL perspective
  (facilitation notes)
• CIL focus group discussions at the local level
  (four CILs held events/submitted comments)
• Written comments submitted by individuals online
  via the NYSILC website (almost 400 comments
  received)

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People Drive the Priorities

• The facilitation outline helped to structure the
  feedback.
• The SPIL Committee tallied the feedback in
  relation to support for various initiatives.
• The people and public comments defined the
  PRIORITIES.
• With the priorities identified, the SPIL
  committee matched them up with budget amounts.
• A preliminary SPIL draft was then sent out
• for public comment.

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The Final PUSH

• Only a few comments were received on the
  preliminary SPIL draft appropriate changes were
  made.
• Was this a fluke, lack of interest, or a sign
  that we had done our job?
• The final SPIL draft was sent out to SILC members
  in January 2007 for review.
• At the February 2007 NYSILC meeting, the SPIL
  draft passed with minor edits no major debates,
  arguments, or filibusters occurred at the meeting!

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What Worked?

• Concepts of participation, ownership, and
  legitimacy.
• Investment of time to gather data/input upfront
  saves confrontation later.
• The real battles occurred during committee work.

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Other NYSILC Surveys

• Statewide CIL Consumer Satisfaction
• Statewide CIL Technology Equipment
• Statewide Housing Needs for People with
  Disabilities
• Statewide Needs Assessment (related to funding
  priorities)
• Focus Group Testing of Ballot Marking Devices
• Voting Trends of New Yorkers with Disabilities
  (with Siena Research Institute Zogby
  International)

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Possible Barriers What Might Get in the Way?
Additional Questions?

• Money
• Time
• Access to people

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Resources That Can Help

• Books
• The public participation handbook making better
  decisions through citizen involvement,
  Creighton, James L., Jossey-Bass, c2005
• Nonprofit Guide to Conducting Community Forums
  Engaging Citizens, Mobilizing Communities, Carol
  Lukas, Linda Hoskins, Fieldstone Alliance
• Nonprofit Guide to Conducting Successful Focus
  Groups, Judith Sharken Simon, Publisher Fieldsto
  ne Alliance
• Websites
• http//www.ce.communitiesscotland.gov.uk/stellent/
  groups/public/documents/webpages/scrcs_006693.hcsp
  
• http//www.hcd.ca.gov/hpd/participation.pdf
• http//www.communities.gov.uk/localgovernment/3609
  02/constitutionsandethics/constitutionalarrangemen
  ts/guidanceenhancing/guidanceenhancing/
• http//www.nysilc.org/spil_plan_2005-7_final/NYSIL
  C20SPIL20Development2020082020101.htm
• IL NET Project Partners (ILRU, NCIL, and APRIL)