the clinic sponsors annual health fairs that target Black women and Latinos and has
a presence at cultural events including the Puerto Rican Parade and the Cleveland
Asian Festival. Spanish courses for physicians are offered on campus to improve
patient relations.
For the past six years, Mercy’s Health Partners’ Rising Stars Program has
worked with the Lorain County Urban League to expose high-school students from
traditionally underrepresented groups to careers in healthcare. “Our goal is to create
the next generation of healthcare leaders for our community,” says Sascha Chatman,
Mercy’s regional diversity officer. With its Parish Nursing Programs, Mercy teams up
with predominantly Black and Latino churches to provide education, outreach and
health screenings. They also partner with the Urban League to educate at-risk men
about diabetes in a program called Save Our Sons.
“The Commission focuses
on strengthening the
regional economy by
strengthening all businesses.
MBEs hire MBEs, and the
growth of minority
businesses of all sizes
increases competitiveness
and attractiveness
of the region.”
ANDREW JACKSON,
SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT AND
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE
COMMISSION ON
CLEVELAND PARTNERSHIP
Educating the Community
Educational programs also offer an important arena for outreach. As a community hub, the Cleveland Public Library is a public space for cross-cultural connections.
“We share in the vision of a sustainable Cleveland transformed by the collective
impact of determined people and organizations working together,” says Madeline
Corchado, the library’s director of human resources. “Our role in this transformation
is the work we do at the center of the city’s culture of learning.” That role as an
educational center is substantial. The library is on target to reach its goal of doubling
the number of computers available to the public in 2012. A state-of-the art computer
lab is slated to open at the downtown branch in May, offering access to cutting-edge
equipment and a variety of technology classes. The library also encourages small
businesses to sponsor and host branch events.
“It’s transforming library programs into networking events where there is a
free exchange of practical business information that directly speaks to the needs
of our community,” says Corchado. One of the most tangible outreach efforts is
the Bookmobile, a 32-foot full-service mobile library that visits all of Cleveland’s
neighborhoods year-round. Demand for the program is strong: Participation in the
Bookmobile was up 500 percent in 2010.
KeyBank is also dedicated to reaching out to community members where
they live and work. Many of the bank’s outreach efforts revolve around financial
education through the Underserved Initiative Program. “As a core component
of our underserved strategy, this investment assists individuals in becoming
better educated about their options to improve their financial capabilities,”
says Poppie Parish, Key’s client education manager. “More than 400 KeyBank
employees volunteer as financial educators in their communities.” For example,
Super Refund Saturday, a volunteer event, processes low-income residents’ tax
refunds without charge. More than 20,000 people have received free financial
services and education. These financial-literacy programs empower Cleveland’s
traditionally underserved populations to manage money and achieve goals such as
homeownership and college education.
The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland is also committed to financial education in
the community. Its Learning Center and Money Museum features 30 free interactive
exhibits. Modeled on state educational benchmarks, the museum’s programs book
seven months in advance. The Cleveland Fed Mentor Program offers educational
and networking programs to a predominantly Black high school in East Cleveland.
Bank leaders meet with traditionally underserved students to share career advice
in the Leadership Dialogue Series. Last spring, the bank inserted a financial-literacy
workbook for kids in a regional Black newspaper. The Cleveland Fed has distributed
