Education, Youth Services and Jobs Top List of Community Needs Union Settlement Association today announced the results of a comprehensive survey of over 1,200 individuals who utilize Union Settlement‟s programs and services in East Harlem. The survey was conducted with the assistance of the Hunter College School of Social Work, which compiled and analyzed the results from the survey.
Among other questions, the survey participants were asked what they considered to be the biggest need in East Harlem, and the top three responses were education (23%), youth services (16%) and jobs/employment (11%). Other common answers included community building, crime reduction/violence prevention, affordable housing, child care and health care.
“The results of this survey show that residents are more focused on education and community services than in years past,” said David Nocenti, Union Settlement‟s Executive Director. “For example, affordable housing which ranked the top three concerns in our 2008 survey, no longer ranks in the top five. It was interesting that „community building‟ ranked so high, even above crime prevention. In addition, I am very pleased that satisfaction rates are so high among Union Settlement‟s program participants; nearly 94% of respondents were always or usually satisfied with our services.”
“The Hunter College School of Social Work is moving to East Harlem in September 2011, and so it was great to have the opportunity to help develop and analyze this survey,” said Jacqueline Mondros, Dean of the Hunter College School of Social Work. “It is very important for us to learn more about the interests and concerns of the local community, and this survey provides some very valuable insights in this area.”
Union Settlement surveys the participants in its programs every two years to determine their satisfaction with the programs and services being offered, and to learn about ways in which those programs can be improved. In addition, the survey seeks information about other services that are needed, and what the respondents consider to be the biggest needs in the community.
The surveys were provided to participants in nine different Union Settlement programs: Adult Education, Childcare/HeadStart, College Readiness, Credit Union, Family Child Care Network, Home Care, Mental Health Counseling, Senior Services and Youth Services. A total of 1,258 individuals responded to the 2010 survey, which was an increase of 211 over the 2008 survey. The age of respondents ranged from seven to 92, with 15% under the age of 18, and 13% aged 60 or over. A substantial majority (70%) of those surveyed were women. Respondents represented a very diverse mix of ethnic and racial backgrounds. Nearly two-thirds (62%) were Latino or Hispanic, 27% were African American or Black, 4% identified two or more races, while the remainder of respondents identified as either Caucasian/White (3%), Asian (1%) or other (2%). The surveyed participants reported speaking a total of 16 different languages, primarily English (45%) or Spanish (43%). Only 51% were born in the United States, with 13% being from Puerto Rico and the remaining 36% being born elsewhere. Of those born outside of the United States and Puerto Rico the most common other countries of origin were Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Ecuador. “I want to thank the Hunter College School of Social Work for its tremendous assistance on this project, and in particular Assistant Professor Mary Cavaleri and Assistant Professor Nancy Giunta,” said David Nocenti. “Their hard work and insights were invaluable in compiling and analyzing these results.”
Union Settlement Association
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