Community Evaluation Solutions

This one is personal for me. Almost nine years ago, I lost my mom to a fall, so when I say falls prevention matters, I mean it.

On the latest Community Possibilities, I talked with Emily Neighbors and Tori Ring from the National Council on Aging about how common falls really are (more than 1 in 4 older adults falls each year), why so many people stay quiet about it, and what simple steps can lower the risk, at home and out in the world.

We also dug into why community coalitions, not just individuals, are the key to real change, and how you can get involved in your own community during Falls Prevention Awareness Week, September 21 through 25.

If you have an older parent, neighbor, or friend, this episode is for you. Give it a listen and pass it along.

🎧 Listen wherever you get your podcasts or at https://communityevaluationsolutions.squarespace.com/podcast

Recently I got to sit down with Tiffany Watson on Community Possibilities, and honestly, I left the conversation with a lump in my throat.

Tiffany leads Gilmer County Family Connection, and for the last five years she's been at the center of an effort to bring workforce housing to a community that was quietly pricing out its own workforce. Teachers. Bus drivers. The people serving you lunch or ringing up your groceries. They couldn't afford to live where they worked anymore.

Tiffany told me about a zoning meeting that went so badly she and her colleague were shouted down by an angry crowd. She said she went home that night wondering if her family needed her to walk away from it all.

She didn't walk away.

Instead, her team took a breath, reminded themselves it was just one setback in one location, and kept going. Five years, one denied application, a whole lot of community meetings, and a lot of heart later, 50 families are moving into new apartments in Gilmer County this summer.

Tiffany is also a mom of three boys, and she talked about how her son's health journey taught her that showing up and asking for help isn't weakness; it's how change happens. That thread ran through everything she shared with me.
If you've ever wondered whether one person, or one small group of neighbors, can move the needle on something as big as housing, give this episode a listen. It's a good one.

https://www.buzzsprout.com/1585792/episodes/19557238

Have you ever tried to fill out a job application on your phone? Or help your kid submit homework without a laptop at home? Then you already know what the digital divide feels like. It isn't about convenience; it's about access and dignity.

This week on Community Possibilities, I sit down with Richard Hicks, CEO and President of Inspire EDU, a Georgia nonprofit that treats technology like an essential service. Richard calls it a technology version of the food bank: refurbishing devices, keeping laptops out of landfills, and pairing every device with training so families can use it with confidence.

We talk about Inspire EDU's Learning Spark Initiative, family workshops, adult digital literacy classes, a STEM pipeline for young people, and why coalitions and honest promises matter so much in this work.

Give it a listen, share it with a community leader, and tell me one idea you want your town to try next.

Episode Link: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1585792/episodes/19500784

Want more help? Try our Community Leader Template on our Resources page.

Have you ever tried to fill out a job application on your phone? Or help your kid submit homework without a laptop at home? Then you already know what the digital divide feels like. It isn't about convenience; it's about access and dignity.

This week on Community Possibilities, I sit down with Richard Hicks, CEO and President of Inspire EDU, a Georgia nonprofit that treats technology like an essential service. Richard calls it a technology version of the food bank: refurbishing devices, keeping laptops out of landfills, and pairing every device with training so families can use it with confidence.

We talk about Inspire EDU's Learning Spark Initiative, family workshops, adult digital literacy classes, a STEM pipeline for young people, and why coalitions and honest promises matter so much in this work.

Give it a listen, share it with a community leader, and tell me one idea you want your town to try next.

Episode Link: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1585792/episodes/19500784

Want more help? Try our Community Leader Template. https://communityevaluationsolutions.squarespace.com/config/?frameUrl=%2Fcommunity-leader-template

Friends, I sat down with Shazad Carbaidwala and Dr. Leila Richards from Prisoner Visitation and Support for the newest episode of Community Possibilities, and I am still thinking about it.

PVS volunteers visit people incarcerated in federal and military prisons across the country, often people who have gone months or years without a single visitor. No agenda. No digging into someone's past. Just showing up and listening.

Shazad put it simply: “Who am I to judge anybody on what their wrongdoings are?” Leila talked about choosing not to let a person's crime color how she sees them, because, as she quoted attorney Bryan Stevenson,
“We are all better than the worst thing we have ever done.”

This conversation challenged me in the best way, and I think it will challenge you too.

Give it a listen, then share it with someone who believes community is bigger than the people who are easy to see.

https://bit.ly/FBCommunityPossibilitiesEpisode88

Be honest: when things start to go sideways on a project, what’s your first move?

Take charge and start assigning tasks? Come up with five new ideas? Start listing everything that could go wrong? Or call everyone together to figure it out as a group?

In our latest blog post, we break down four leadership styles we see all the time in community nonprofit and coalition work, the Controller, the Dreamer, Negative Nelly, and the Inspirational Leader. Each one has real strengths and a real growth edge.

Curious which one sounds like you (or your whole team)? Check it in this week’s blog post.

And if you want to go deeper, we made a free workbook with a short quiz and reflection questions. Grab it here.

Susan M Wolfe, PhD and I brought our participatory A game to support National Council on Aging’s Preventing Falls Coalition grantees at conference. Beach balls, build your coalition (spaghetti and gumballs), Action Ladder, Journey Mapping, Convo Cards, Focused Conversation and more! Our coalition leaders were engaged the whole time. Thank you for all who participated and for the opportunity NCOA.

What makes a strong coalition? Here is what it isn’t:

🚫a meeting
🚫a networking event
🚫 information sharing

If coalition work has felt like it’s plateaued, it’s often not because people don’t care. It’s because the coalition is missing a few “growth conditions,” like:

🛫 A member structure that keeps people meaningfully engaged
🔗 A clear focus on systems strategies (not just activities)
🎬 Meetings designed to make decisions and move work forward
🗺️ An evaluation plan that's linked to your coalition’s strategy
📈 Data collection that’s connected to action from the start

This spring, if you want to strengthen the roots of your coalition and create sustainable momentum, check out our Coalition Self-Assessment Tool. It will help you identify your blind spots and point to actionable next steps.

Coalition Self-Assessment Tool — Community Evaluation Solutions FREE TOOL Coalition Self-Assessment Tool As a coalition, you have a vision for your community.But sometimes obstacles get in the way and sidetrack your mission. This free tool is designed to help you assess your coalition’s strengths and pinpoint opportunities for improvement.How it helps:Identify...