Authors: Meaonka Agers, Ciara Sheerin, Betsey Carroll
The Education Culture Opportunities (ECO) Foundation was founded in 2018 by Kyle Morris. Morris is a survivor of gun violence in Philadelphia and has known many others who have survived or been victim to gun violence. To combat this, Morris created the ECO Foundation. This community-based organization aims to liberate community members from systems of oppression that exacerbate gun violence. Liberation allows people to better themselves and their community. ECO reaches its goals through a diverse set of programs that provide engaging and culturally relevant academic support to students of all ages, inside and outside of education institutions. The ECO Foundation also has cultural programs that work to uplift and foster a sense of community through a variety of events that honor the arts and cultural practices within the community while encouraging collaboration among residents. They have hosted artist showcases, self-care exhibitions, and cultural exploration festivals. Furthermore, the ECO Foundation uses opportunity programs to tackle food insecurity and workforce development challenges, which are created and exacerbated by social and racial inequalities.
Image description: The ECO Foundation logo. ECO is spelt out in red, black, and green respectively.
Outstanding Leaders Helping Each other Achieve Dreams (OL HEAD)
One program that ECO prioritizes is the OL HEAD program. This comprehensive workforce and wellness program hosts participants aged 18-30 years old for 8 weeks of paid programming. During this time, participants are provided with transportation assistance to the community center and other program sites where they can earn certifications. They can choose from many certifications including CPR, GED prep, ServSafe, lifeguard, and a Stop the Bleed first aid course. Additionally, participants are able to develop social and emotional skills, attend eight therapy sessions, engage in mentorship, and attend a wellness retreat. Developing and strengthening these social skills while building job-specific expertise helps the participants become well rounded workers and leaders. They are able to put their skills to use by designing a Neighborhood Impact Program in which they serve and mentor youth. Program participants are given a budget which they can use when designing the program to plan outings, events, and experiences for the youth. At the end of the program, OL HEAD participants are honored at a commencement ceremony where the community can learn about their growth, certifications, mentorship, and job opportunities.
The last cohort of OL HEADs saw many success stories. Everyone who completed the program attended a retreat in the Poconos in which they earned a gun safety certificate from the Sunset Hill Shooting Range. They also participated in a Gun Violence Group Therapy with the community-based organization Black Men Heal. The goal was to learn about traumatic stress, grief, conflict management, and coping mechanisms in order to reduce the likelihood of retaliation. Additionally, the participants were given a Know Your Rights workshop with Philadelphia attorneys. The participants are scheduled to be certified in CPR, first aid, and Stop the Bleed.
Moreover, the men were able to achieve individual goals. One participant moved into the ECO Center housing, was certified as a home health aide, and found a full-time job working with his grandmother. Another received a Coursera certification in Digital & Social Media Marketing along with an internship working for a local Black business. Another participant got a Coursera certification in Stocks and Investing. He used his skills and put half of his $1,000 completion stipend into the stock market earning a 6% return in his first 60 days. He also was certified in Edutainment (the art of intentionally blending education and entertainment), obtained his clearances to work with children, and got a full-time job as a paraprofessional working at a Southwest Philadelphia middle school. These men exhibit the goals of the ECO Foundation by taking opportunity to better themselves and their community.
Kyle Morris poses with ECO participant Mike Watson, who holds his certificate.
Men sit around a table on an ECO trip to the Poconos trip. They are participating in a “Blame it on the Onions” workshop where men can discuss trauma and triumph.
Image of a man cutting another man’s hair at the Under the Cuts workshop, where men get a line up while discussing mental health and get advice on challenges in life.
Two ECO participants in a self-defense workshop
Collaborating with DATA CoLab
The OL HEAD program has been a great success for ECO’s young adult population. Given this, ECO partnered with the DATA CoLab to focus on expanding their youth program, the Young Bold Unstoppable Leaders (BUL). In this program, youth build community and skills four times a week at the ECO Center. The DATA CoLab gathered and shared school information such as attendance and suspension rates with ECO as they looked for youth to join cohorts. This was paired with Geographical Incident, Arrest, and Case (IAC) information. These data were put to use by ECO leaders as they gave public talks about the areas they serve and the work they do. Additionally, the CoLab coordinator was able to provide support at Young BUL events, including monthly community dinners, community brunches and cookouts, and food distribution events. ECO prioritizes feeding the community hot and fresh food while making space for engagement and connection. The coordinator also worked with ECO staff to co-write a data story for their final data-driven project that highlights ECO’s work in the community.
Conclusion
ECO’s programs such as the Young BULs and OL HEAD work with participants to improve both themselves and their community. This DATA CoLab is honored to collaborate with organizations such as ECO to continue to support community leaders and organizations as the drivers of change. Through this partnership, the DATA CoLab has provided ECO with relevant data products and coordinator support so ECO can continue its community-led work. This has resulted in ECO hosting two cohorts of Young BULs and food distribution to 310 households. Together, the ECO Foundation and DATA CoLab’s work is an example of collaboration between the DAO and a community-based organization.
Acknowledgements
The DATA CoLab is honored to work with organizations like the ECO Foundation.
We welcome feedback, comments, and inquiries to collaborate with the CoLab or support for the associated community partners at [email protected].
The DATA CoLab is made possible through funding from the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD).