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<br /> Outside Agencies/Human Services <br /> <br />Attachments <br />Community Impact Award <br />If you are applying for the Town of Chapel Hill’s Community Impact Award, please provide <br />responses to the questions below. All other applicants, please skip these questions. (Responses <br />should not exceed 100 words per question) <br /> <br />1. Please describe the impact the proposed programs will have on the target population. Please include <br />specific quantitative and qualitative data in your response. <br />This year, we are requesting support for the launch of the Freedom School (FS), a new <br />program within LAG, which works to engage high school students in critical thinking and <br />peer-to-peer learning around racism, equity, and local history. The FS grows youths’ ability <br />to be change-makers through learning about local racial justice movements and civic <br />engagement. This summer, we will offer 24 workshops co-led by students and community <br />leaders. By the end of last year’s one-week pilot, all participants reported extremely high <br />(90-100%) levels of connection to social justice movements, with significant 10-30% <br />increases as a result of the program. We plan to achieve similar outcomes this summer <br />with the full launch of the FS, expanding the length to two weeks and doubling the <br />workshops offered. <br /> <br />2. What methods/tools will your organization use to evaluate the proposed program’s effectiveness? <br />Please include specific examples, such as a logic model. <br />The Jackson Center utilizes an outcomes model to evaluate the Freedom School's <br />effectiveness, encompassing program goals, inputs, activities, outputs, and outcomes. <br />Included as part of the evaluation is entrance and exit surveys for participants, which will <br />measure students’ knowledge of local history and civic engagement, as well as levels of <br />empowerment and connection to social justice movements. The entrance and exit surveys <br />also request participant feedback and reflection about topics covered, their learning and <br />growth, and areas of desired further learning. These surveys were successfully utilized <br />during our 2021 pilot to track impact and make recommendations for this year’s program. <br /> <br />3. Please briefly describe how your proposed programs aligns with evidence-based approaches to <br />addressing human service need(s). <br />Historically, Freedom Schools were education sites used to disrupt “larger social <br />frameworks” in which “Black students are positioned as inferior and incapable” (Jackson & <br />Howard, 2014). The Chapel Hill Freedom School’s curriculum is co-created by its <br />students, encouraging their values and cultures to shine through. Freedom Schools <br />provide “social and historical awareness,” enabling students to become culturally- <br />responsive educators in their own communities. A study in the Journal of Black <br />Psychology found that, as a result of “culturally relevant” curricula, FS have positively <br />influenced racial identity and “empowered youth toward African/African-American cultures” <br />and unspoken norms, with attendees showing increases in social skills and commitment to <br />social action (Bethea, 2012). <br /> <br />DocuSign Envelope ID: 453E455B-EB8F-4C63-A66F-89BF3CD9DE40