The 2009 Neighborhood Networks Regional Technical Assistance Workshops (RTAWs): Building on Past Success, Delivering a New and Improved Experience

Information by State  Print version

While location and date have a large impact on the success of a workshop, unquestionably the most important contributing factor is content. Content that is useful and relevant to attendees, whether the message is delivered by an industry expert or a peer who has encountered and overcome a similar challenge, is what inspires attendees to turn the lessons learned at the workshop into positive outcomes.

The Neighborhood Networks Regional Technical Assistance Workshops (RTAWs) deliver relevant, customized content to Neighborhood Networks center staff and stakeholders through a variety of workshops and peer-to-peer networking opportunities. RTAW attendees have been applying the knowledge and using the resources they have gained at the three-day workshops to enhance center operations, help residents achieve greater success, and sustain much-needed center programs.

Planning Sessions that Help Centers Remain at the Forefront

When planning the RTAWs, focus groups are conducted with center staff, property owners and managers, and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) staff to ensure the delivery of workshops that help Neighborhood Networks centers provide the programs and services residents need and want.

"We know that the information and skills required to operate a successful Neighborhood Networks center are constantly changing," explained Neighborhood Networks Director, Delores A. Pruden. "Our goal is to not only keep up with, but ahead of, stakeholders' changing needs. We do this by using their input to design sessions tailored for Neighborhood Networks center staff and stakeholders. For example, focus group participants continually tell us that funding center programs is a challenge. We use this information to design a session that offers tips for securing funding, but we do not stop there. We then speak with funding experts and conduct an analysis of the current funding environment. Next, we design a session that offers tips and techniques that enable center staff and stakeholders to successfully compete in today's tight funding arena. The same is true for technology-based sessions. Neighborhood Networks centers rely heavily on technology to help residents achieve greater self-sufficiency. The RTAWs offer sessions that not only teach center staff and stakeholders how to make the most of their existing technological resources, but also what future trends may impact their programming."

Using center staff and stakeholder input to guide planning has paid off for RTAW attendees because sessions are customized for Neighborhood Networks stakeholders. This means that attendees can be certain that every session will offer applicable information, tips, and resources designed to enhance center operations, making for a more enriching learning experience.

What Attendees Are Saying About the Neighborhood Networks RTAWs

For Neighborhood Networks, the success of an RTAW is measured by a single factor: attendee feedback. And, based on that feedback, the Neighborhood Networks RTAWs are delivering exactly what attendees need and want.

David Zermeno, Executive Director of Boston's Operation P.E.A.C.E. and an attendee of both 2008 RTAWs held in Nashville, Tennessee and San Francisco, California, has this to say about his experience, "I am so grateful to have participated in the Neighborhood Networks RTAWs. I particularly loved that the sessions had relevant categories. I left with "real-life" resources for serving our communities with excellence. The RTAW chose facilitators who honored the wealth of knowledge that already exists from the collective experience of all the participants in each session. As participants, we learned so much just from listening to each other's approaches to what works and what does not. I mean, why recreate the wheel? The RTAW sessions allowed us to network and share our wealth of knowledge in overcoming common challenges we have all faced. As soon as I returned to Boston, I was immediately able to use the RTAW resources to improve my internship programs, community participation, partnerships, and grantwriting efforts. These invaluable resources have made me a much more effective executive director. In terms of a nonprofit education, the Neighborhood Networks RTAWs are the best deal in town."

For Jim Kosiara, Grants and Resident Services Manager for Apartment Investment and Management Company (AIMCO), attending the 2008 Nashville RTAW was all about the networking opportunities. "AIMCO operates 24 Neighborhood Networks centers in California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Virginia. Each of these centers serves very different audiences who require very different programs and services. For me, I wanted to attend an RTAW to meet staff from centers across the United States, and particularly from the same areas where our centers are located. I also wanted to meet face-to-face with the HUD Headquarters Staff and Neighborhood Networks Coordinators from HUD Field Offices to seek their advice on the most effective ways to open and sustain a center, as AIMCO intends to open more centers in the future. Without a doubt, the RTAW lived up to my expectations. In addition to the wealth of information that was provided during the formal sessions, I learned a lot of 'tricks of the trade' from other attendees."

For Interfaith Homes Property Manager Jennifer Williams, the 2008 Nashville RTAW served as the inspiration to achieve Model Center Classification status, and turned a chance encounter into a hiring opportunity. While attending the RTAW to gain resources that would help her enhance operations at the Interfaith Homes Neighborhood Networks Center in Kalamazoo, Michigan, Williams participated in a session on the Neighborhood Networks Center Classification System. During the session, Williams decided it was time to prove that the Interfaith Homes Neighborhood Networks Center did not simply possess a lot of resources, it delivered the right resources. Williams took the lessons she learned during the Center Classification session home, and four months later, the Interfaith Homes Neighborhood Networks Center became the first Neighborhood Networks center in Michigan, and the 11th in the country, to achieve Model Center Classification.

It was also during the Nashville RTAW that Williams met Tara Edwards, the center program director for another Neighborhood Networks center in Kalamazoo. Like Williams, Edwards was attending the RTAW to learn how to better serve residents' needs. The two women forged a friendship, and discussed the possibility of writing a grant together. When Williams' center director resigned a couple of months after the RTAW, Williams put a call into Edwards to see if she would be interested in the position. Edwards became the director of the Interfaith Homes Neighborhood Networks Center in August 2008.

Two New and Improved RTAWs for 2009

In 2009, HUD will host two Neighborhood Networks RTAWs. The first RTAW will take place April 29 - May 1 at The Fairmont Hotel in Dallas, Texas. In the summer on July 15 - 17, the second RTAW will be held at the Ritz-Carlton in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

A blend of new enhancements and proven success, the RTAWs will offer:

	Fourteen new sessions designed to equip participants with the skills they need to establish a center that is a true community asset. New sessions will discuss starting a financial literacy program; teaching more effectively; negotiating for results; securing funding in tough economic times; assessing the changing job market to identify growing employment sectors; meeting the unique needs of seniors, disabled residents, and youth; and taking workforce development programs to the next level. These new learning experiences will complement the suite of core RTAW sessions, such as partnership development, volunteer recruitment, and program planning, which are consistently requested by participants. All sessions will be customized to meet the specific needs of Neighborhood Networks stakeholders, include a hands-on learning activity, and provide take-home resources. In addition, to offer participants field-tested solutions, center staff will co-present many sessions.
	Techno-sessions designed to help center staff and stakeholders remain knowledgeable on the latest technology. These techno-sessions, which will include cyber fundraising and podcasting, will teach participants how to harness the power of technology to improve center operations and help users achieve their goals. Participants will also catch a glimpse of what the future holds for technology and the latest trends during a very special general session.
	A chance for participants in the Neighborhood Networks "Mentor Centers" program to meet with their mentors to share ideas, work through challenges, and strengthen their mentorship. Mentors will also be available during the RTAWs to meet with potential mentees.
	Moderated Neighborhood Networks Discussion Groups designed to strengthen peer-to-peer communication and networking by providing a forum for participants to strategize solutions on issues important to all center staff members and stakeholders.
	An exhibit area where partners and organizations can display and distribute information and resources useful to centers. The exhibit hall will also include a Strategic Tracking and Reporting Tool (START) and Center Classification Help Desk where participants can receive one-on-one, hands-on assistance.

A two-day grantwriting workshop will precede each of the 2009 RTAWs. Space for this consistently popular workshop is limited to 40 participants, so participants are advised to reserve a place today.

"The 2009 Neighborhood Networks RTAWs promise to be like no other workshop," reported Pruden. "I encourage every center representative and stakeholder to participate in one of these professional development events that deliver a tailored learning experience and provide an opportunity for them to hone their management skills, remain current on technological advances, and keep pace in today's ever-changing world."

More information about the 2009 RTAWs is available on the RTAW page of our site, or call the Neighborhood Networks Information Center toll-free at (888) 312-2743. The hearing impaired may access the number via TTY by calling the Federal Information Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.