HOPE
Community Development Corporation
Helping Others Pursue Excellence
600 Kanawha Blvd., West
Charleston, West Virginia 25302
[email protected]
Reverend Matthew J. Watts, President & CEO
HOPE Community Development Corporation
Our Vision
Community Development
Families HOPE
will
be
inspired
to pursue spiritual,
Corporation
moral, intellectual, social and physical
excellence
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Our Mission
To empower low income families to achieve
HOPE Community
Development
self-sufficiency
by
promoting
family and
Corporation
youth development, education, employment
and training, economic and community
development and spiritual renewal
3
HOPE Community Development Corporation
An Overview of HOPE CDC
•HOPE Youth and Family Services Clearinghouse
HOPE Community Development
Corporation
•HOPE Workforce
Development Center
•HOPE Homeownership Zone
•HOPE Youth Development Movement
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
The HOPE Youth Development Movement
Comprehensive – Holistic – Integrated Strategy For:
• School Drop Out Prevention
HOPE Community Development
• ClosingCorporation
the Achievement Gap
• Overall Academic Improvement
• Truancy Reduction
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
The HOPE Youth Development Movement
Comprehensive – Holistic – Integrated Strategy For:
• Disciplinary Referral Reduction
HOPE Community Development
Corporation
• Substance
Abuse Prevention
• Gang Resistance
• Delinquency Prevention
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
The HOPE Youth Development Movement
Comprehensive – Holistic – Integrated Strategy For:
• Teen Violence
Reduction
HOPE Community
Development
Corporation
• Teen Pregnancy Reduction
• Increase College Going Rates Among
Low Income Youth
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
The HOPE Youth Development Movement
Comprehensive – Holistic – Integrated Strategy For:
• Improving High School
HOPE Community Development
Corporation
Graduation
Rates
• Stopping the School Yard to
Prison Yard Pipeline
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
HOPE
Youth
Development
HOPE
Community
Development
Corporation
Movement
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Vision of
HOPE Youth Development Movement
HOPE Community Development
Corporation
Youth will be inspired to pursue spiritual,
moral, intellectual and physical excellence
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
The Philosophy of HOPE CDC
Children and youth function in complex
systems and they need to be supported
through and by relationships with caring
adults in each of these systems.
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
The Philosophy of HOPE CDC
Identifying the complex systems that
youth function in will help you to define
their problems
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
AHOPE
problem
well
stated
is
Community Development
Corporation
a problem half solved
Charles F. Kettering
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Philosophy of HOPE CDC
Children and Youth Live in Complex Systems
Family System – 77% of African American; 35% of white children
are born out of wedlock in West Virginia, high abuse and neglect
rate
Foster Care System – 3,093 are in DHHR Custody, 2,200 are
under the foster care system in West Virginia



Children-Youth
need to be supported through relationships with caring adults in each of these Systems
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Philosophy of HOPE CDC
Children and Youth Live in Complex Systems
Education System – a third of all kids drop out of high school; a
third that graduate do not have employable skills
Social System of Peers – substance abuse, out of wedlock
pregnancies, sexual transmitted diseases, teen violence
Children-Youth


need to be supported through relationships with caring adults in each of these Systems

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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Philosophy of HOPE CDC
_______________________________________________________________________________
Children and Youth Live in Complex Systems
Community System– substandard housing, crime and violence,
domestic violence, and homelessness
Economic System – 26% of all children live in poverty, 11% are
living in extreme poverty
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

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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Philosophy of HOPE CDC
_______________________________________________________________________________
Children and Youth Live in Complex Systems
Political System—children have no political voice but are used
to advance the political agenda of others
Juvenile Justice System – nearly 7,000 children in WV appear
before judge or probation officer



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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Philosophy of HOPE CDC
Children and Youth Live in Complex Systems
Sports and Recreation System—Sports and Recreation have
become the innocent idols – the other gods of our culture and
some cases distracting youth from education
Media System– TV, movies, Internet, newspaper, and magazines
Religious
System
–less than 18% of children in WV attend a

 weekly

religious service
Children-Youth
need to be supported through relationships with caring adults in each of these Systems
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
It is not what you look at that matters
HOPE Community Development
But what you see.
Corporation
Henry David Thoreau
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Media
How HOPE CDC
See Youth
Foster
Care
Community
Economic
Education
Youth
Peers
Political
Family
Sports
Juvenile
Justice
Religions
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Crisis Facing Youth
The Broken and/or Dysfunctional Systems
Results in the Youth being Disconnected
Youth are disconnected from a compelling vision
of excellence
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Crisis Facing Youth
•Disconnected from Fathers
•Disconnected from Family
•Disconnected from Church
•Disconnected from School
•Disconnected from Compelling Vision
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Crisis Facing Youth
•Disconnected from Work
•Disconnected from Caring Adults
•Disconnected from Social Capital
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Our current systems are excellent
systems at diagnosing symptoms
our elementary schools in particular have
become the social pathological diagnostic
centers because this is where we really
start to pay attention to poor kids
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Diagnosing and/or treating the symptoms
is important because it brings some relief,
but it does not solve the root problem
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Here are some of the symptoms that
indicate that a youth is in trouble
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
The Symptoms
The Symptoms
Youth who are ….
•giving birth out of wedlock
•living in poverty
•on free or reduced lunch
•with substance abuse issues
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
The Symptoms
Youth who are ..
•status offenders
•involved in the court system
•violent
•have gang involvement
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
The Symptoms
Youth who are ..
•dropping out of school
•truant from school
•runaway from home
•are homeless
•in foster care
•involved in prostitution
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
These Symptoms If Not Properly Treated
Can Result in Devastating Outcomes for
Both the Youth and the Community
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Categories of Youth At-Risk for Failure






Incarcerated Youth
Detained Youth
Court Involved Youth
Youth with Frequent Contact with Police
DHHR Status Offenders
Youth in Alternative School Placement
HOPE Community Development Corporation
_
Categories of Youth At-Risk for Failure


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

Youth In Special Education
Youth with Chronic Disciplinary Referrals
Youth in DHHR Custody
Youth in Foster Care
Youth Aging out of Foster Care
Youth Receiving TANF Benefits
HOPE Community Development Corporation
The Challenge – Building the Bridges to Support Youth
Recruiting and Engaging Caring Adults in
Content Based Mentoring to win Youth to a
Compelling Vision of Spiritual, Moral,
Intellectual and Physical Excellence
HOPE Community Development Corporation
HOPE CDC believes caring adults must Bridge to each of
the systems that the youth function within
The Bridge Principal
Building Relationships Intentionally During Grace
Encounters
HOPE Community Development Corporation
. . . . to the Family
Building the Bridges
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
. . . . to the School
Building the Bridges
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
. . . . to the Law Enforcement
Building the Bridges
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
. . . . to the Social Welfare System
Building the Bridges
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
. . . . to the Juvenile Justice System
Building the Bridges
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
The HOPE Youth Development Movement
is designed to Build Bridges to each the
above entities
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HOPE Youth Development Movement
 HOPE Youth and Family Clearinghouse – Bridge to Family
 HOPE In School Youth Development – Bridge to Education
 HOPE-TALKS Mentoring – Bridge to Social System of Peers
 HOPE Alternative Education Academy – Bridge to Education
HOPE Youth Development Movement

HOPE Project Re-Connect For Drop-outs – Bridge to Education

HOPE Project Safe Neighborhood – Bridge to Community

HOPE Homeownership Program – Bridge to Community

HOPE Structured Recreation -- Bridge to Recreation
HOPE Youth Development Movement
 HOPE & HELP for Families TV & Radio– Bridge to Media
 HOPE Intervention for Status Offenders– Bridge to
DHHR/Foster Care
 HOPE Workforce Development Center – Bridge to
Economic/Workforce
 HOPE Building and Construction Trades– Bridge to
Economic/Workforce
HOPE Youth Development Movement

HOPE Alternative Sentencing Initiative– Bridge to Juvenile Justice

HOPE-Re-entering Our Communities Successfully
(ROCS) -- Bridge to Juvenile Justice

HOPE Youth Discipleship -- Bridge to Religious
HOPE Community Development Corporation
If you cannot measure what you are doing, then you
don’t really know what you are doing and you cannot
improve what ever it is that you are doing.
The HOPE Youth Development Movement Has Measurable Outcomes
1. Reduce Absenteeism and Truancy
2. Improve Academic Performance – Close the Achievement Gap
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
If you cannot measure what you are doing, then you
don’t really know what you are doing and you cannot
improve what ever it is that you are doing.
The HOPE Youth Development Movement Has Measurable Outcomes
3. Reduce Disciplinary Referrals
4. Reduce Juvenile Delinquency
5. Reduce the number of youth graduating into the adult criminal justice
system
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
If you cannot measure what you are doing, then you don’t
really know what you are doing and you cannot improve
what ever it is that you are doing.
The HOPE Youth Development Movement Has Measurable Outcomes
6. Reduce substance abuse among teens
7. Reduce teen pregnancy
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
If you cannot measure what you are doing, then you
don’t really know what you are doing and you cannot
improve what ever it is that you are doing.
The HOPE Youth Development Movement Has Measurable Outcomes
8. Reduce teen involvement in gangs
9. Increase number of youth enrolling in post-secondary education or
certification training programs
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HOPE Community Development Corporation
Participating Schools
Number of Students
Kanawha County:
Chandler Elementary
31
Glenwood Elementary
43
Piedmont Elementary
57
J.E. Robins Elementary
32
Stonewall Jackson Middle
Capital High
100
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Cabell County:
Huntington Middle
40
Guyandotte Elementary
25
Spring Hill Elementary
25
ROCS Participants
Alternative Sentencing (Project
Safe Neighborhood)
Total
105
50
550
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HOPE
Community Development Corporation
Helping Others Pursue Excellence
600 Kanawha Blvd., West
Charleston, West Virginia 25302
[email protected]
Reverend Matthew J. Watts, President & CEO