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Children Living in Concentrated Poverty | |
 A new Annie E. Casey Foundation KIDS COUNT Data Snapshot explores the increased number of U.S. children living in high-poverty communities. Texas has the 4th highest number of children living in areas where 30% or more live below the poverty line. Three of the twenty cities with the highest rates of concentrated poverty are in Texas - El Paso, Dallas and Houston. The report found that 22% of Austin children live in areas of high concentrated poverty.
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U.S. Education Secretary Comes to ACC |
 U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan will be the featured speaker at a town hall meeting at the ACC Eastview Campus on Thursday, March 8th. The event is designed to connect students, educators, business leaders, and policy makers for a discussion of changing trends in higher education and the need to align education programs with in-demand skills.
Dr. Brenda Dann-Messier, Assistant Secretary for Vocational and Adult Education, will tour ACC's workforce programs in the morning and hold round-table discussions with students. Secretary Duncan will speak from 1 - 2:15 p.m. on how community colleges can partner with business and industry to meet the demand for high-skilled workers and to benefit the American economy. |
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Austin Gets a "B" for Racial Equity |
The Urban Institute's Metro Trends has graded the nation's 100 largest metro areas on five indicators of racial equity. The five county Austin metro area earns a "B" according to the report. The rankings reflect residential segregation and gaps between blacks and whites in neighborhood income, school test scores, adult employment rates, and home ownership. Visit Grading the Top 100 Metros: Racial Equity for African Americans to learn more. |
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More than Half of Incarcerated Youth Suffer from Mental Health Issues |
 An article in today's Austin American Statesman quotes the Director of the Texas Juvenile Justice Department as stating that more than half of the youth in custody in Texas' six juvenile detention facilities have been diagnosed with at least moderate mental health problems. The article quotes Cherie Townsend's testimony to the Texas House Corrections Committee during which she made a plea for treatment and early intervention to help young people before they wind up behind bars. |
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Forum on Expanding Housing Opportunities |
 UT Opportunity Forum will host a presentation and panel discussion on "Expanding Fair Housing Opportunities for Low-Income Minority Families" on Thursday, March 22nd at the UT School of Law. Elizabeth Julian, Executive Director of the Inclusive Communities Project, will discuss housing segregation and innovative tools being used in the Dallas region to provide low-income minority families with better access to good schools and healthy neighborhoods. Ms. Julian is former Deputy General Counsel for Civil Rights and Litigation, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Local panelists will respond to the presentation. CLE credit if offered. RSVP to rsidopulos@law.utexas.edu. |
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| Reentry Roundtable Receives Award | |
Congratulations to the Travis County Reentry Roundtable. This CAN Issue Area Group will receive the prestigious Governor's Criminal Justice Volunteer Service Award from the Texas Board of Criminal Justice in recognition of its work to prevent recidivism and to help those reentering our community from incarceration. |
| CAN Board of Directors | |
The CAN Board of Directors will meet from 1 to 3 pm on Friday, March 9th in the Boards and Commissions Room of Austin City Hall. CAN staff will present findings from an inventory of over 70 plans in the Austin MSA. Tune in to watch on Cable Channel 6. |
| CAN Community Council Considers 2012 Bond Election | |
The March 19th Community Council meeting will focus on transportation, housing and the upcoming 2012 bond election. Tune in to watch on Cable Channel 6. |
| CAN Events Calendar | |
Keep up with community events and post your own events on the CAN Community Events Calendar. |
| Follow CAN's Tweets | |
Get short, timely updates on meetings, research and more on CAN_Austin. |
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| Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan Nears Final Stages |
 | | Imagine Austin - Set Your Priorities! |
The Comprehensive Plan Citizens Advisory Task Force has endorsed the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan to guide Austin's growth and investments over the next 30 years. The plan is now under review by the Austin Planning Commission, which will hold public hearings on the plan Tuesday, March 13th and Tuesday, March 27th at 6 p.m. at City Hall.
Visit www.imagineaustin.net to review the draft plan. The Plan is expected to be forwarded to the Austin City Council for review in April and for a vote in late May. |
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Connecting People to Resources | |
See a live demo of a new tool that will help connect low to moderate income families to the worker supports and benefits they qualify for. The Texas Health Institute will host a breakfast on Friday, March 30th from 9:30 - 11 a.m. to introduce the Benefit Bank of Texas, an on-line service that connects people to public health insurance, food supplements, earned income tax credits, college aid grants, and Medicare prescription assistance. The breakfast will be held at Strayer University, 8501 N. Mopac, Room 104. RSVP or learn more by contacting aconway@texashealthinstitute.org. |
| Help Plan Behavioral Health Services | |
Austin Travis County Integral Care is holding a community forum to allow community members to help shape community-based behavioral health and developmental disability services and funding priorities over the next two years. Austin Travis County Integral Care Chief Executive Officer David Evans will moderate a community discussion on funding directions and the anticipated service and financial challenges the Affordable Care Act will bring in 2014. The forum, which will take place on Tuesday, March 20th from 5:30 - 7:00 p.m., is free and open to the public. Click here to RSVP. |
| My Health, My Voice: Community Conversations About Health | |
 Key health partners in our community are holding a series of forums in each of the Travis County precincts to gather public input for the creation of a new Health Improvement Plan for Austin and Travis County. The second of these four monthly meetings will be held on Thursday, March 22nd from 6 - 8 p.m. at Del Valle ISD gym, 5301 Ross Road.
The forums will include free health screenings and refreshments, information about services currently available, and an opportunity to share what kinds of services community members want to see. Partners in the effort include the City of Austin, Travis County, the Austin Travis County Health and Human Services Department, Central Health, St. David's Foundation, the Seton Healthcare Family and UTHealth. Learn more.
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Financial Empowerment | |
The City of Austin's Neighborhood Housing and Community Development Department will host a community conversation on financial literacy, home buyer education, the City's down-payment assistance program and other efforts to help Austinites build assets and increase financial stability. Join in the conversation on Friday, March 30th from 9 - 10:30 a.m., 1000 E. 11th Street, Room 400. |
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Free Diabetes Empowerment Education Classes |
Facing a recent diagnosis of diabetes? Do you want to learn more about how to control and prevent diabetes? Austin/Travis County Health and Human Services Department is offering a free Diabetes Empowerment Education Program on four Saturdays in March and April. The classes, to be held from 10:30 a.m. to noon, will be held every other Saturday beginning March 17th at the St. John's Community Center. People with diabetes, their family and friends are welcome. |
| 2-1-1 Training | |
 2-1-1 Texas offers free monthly trainings on when to use 2-1-1 Texas and how to search the 2-1-1 Texas database to find information about available community resources. The targeted audience for these trainings is social services professionals and volunteers. Registration for the training sessions, offered the last Friday of each month, is not required.
Training sessions are held on the last Friday of every month at 2 p.m. at United Way Capital Area, 2000 E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. and last about an hour and a half. For more information, call 2-1-1 and select option 1 or email Amy Price at amy.price@unitedwaycapitalarea.org.
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 Working to promote equity and opportunity. Community Action Network (CAN) is a partnership of agencies, organizations and individuals who work together to enhance the social, health, educational and economic well-being of Central Texas. CAN's role is to enhance awareness of community issues, strengthen partnerships, and support collaborative strategies to promote equity and opportunity.
CAN Partners: Austin Chamber of Commerce, Austin Community College, Austin Independent School District, Austin Travis County Integral Care, Capital Metro, Central Health, City of Austin, Community Justice Council, interfaith Action Central Texas (iACT), One Voice Central Texas, Seton Healthcare Family, St. David's Foundation, St. Edward's University, Travis County, United Way Capital Area, University of Texas at Austin, and Workforce Solutions - Capital Area. CAN Issue Area Groups: Aging Services Council, Basic Needs Coalition, Behavioral Health Planning Partnership, Central Texas Afterschool Network, Child & Youth Mental Health Planning Partnership, Ending Community Homelessness Coalition, HousingWorks, Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Coalition, Literacy Coalition of Central Texas, Ready by 21, Reentry Roundtable, Regional Transit Coordination Committee and Success by Six. |
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