St. Paul plans are on track for Promise Neighborhood

Workers have begun to hit their stride in creating a plan to help children in struggling St. Paul neighborhoods flourish from birth.

After some delays, a 650-family survey is underway, and groups of residents and experts have had the first of what will be several months' worth of meetings.

Officials with the $750,000 Promise Neighborhood planning effort say things are on track to produce a draft plan by summer and a final version by fall. They say they want to put a plan into practice next year, but it remains unclear how it will be financed.

The Promise Neighborhood goal is to flood a 250-block area around two low-performing elementary schools with educational, social, medical and municipal services to create a culture of success for the families that live there. The schools, Jackson and Maxfield, are in the Frogtown and Summit-University neighborhoods. It's one of the poorest areas of St. Paul.

The city, school district, Ramsey County and various foundations and nonprofits are working together, along with residents, to determine community needs and how to provide services to address them. The Amherst H. Wilder Foundation is leading the project.

"There really are a lot of moving parts to this," said Paul Mattessich, executive director of Wilder Research. "It is so exciting, because it's a rare opportunity to truly have broad public engagement along with professionals and institutions to determine what the community will do."

The goal is to interview 650 parents within the area. Initially, the survey was expected to be completed by mid-January. So far, about 100 have been completed. The survey has 90 questions, which cover topics from finances to education to health.

Neighborhood residents who participate in the groups will receive stipends, about $10 per meeting and a $100 bonus if they attend all 12 meetings.

Project officials also are closing in on choosing a company to create a computer system that will track children and the various services they use. The purpose is to create accountability and gauge the effectiveness of services and costs, as well as to improve communication among the various partner agencies.

Future funding unclear

Wilder was one of 21 organizations across the United States to receive money from the U.S. Department of Education to map out a Promise Neighborhood plan. About 340 groups applied. The grant was $500,000, and local partners -- including the city, school district and foundations -- contributed another $250,000.

At this point, there aren't any estimates as to what a Promise Neighborhood program would cost to put into place in St. Paul, Mattessich said. The Harlem Children's Zone, for example, has an overall budget of $75 million, much of which comes from private funding.

Regardless of how much federal money might be made available, the St. Paul effort will continue, officials say.

"We'll be looking locally and nationally for support," said Erica Schumacher, an aide to Mayor Chris Coleman.

Schools preparing

St. Paul public schools administrators -- in the midst of overhauling school assignment plans, academic goals and budgeting -- have created room for the Promise Neighborhood project to blossom.

Historically, Jackson and Maxfield have mostly served students of color. Stagnant and far-below-average test scores at the schools, as well as a widening achievement gap districtwide between white students and students of color, have pushed officials and community members into action.

The district's proposed plan is set to be voted on in March.